By Joe Hoppe
A roundup of key agricultural commodity markets for the week May 5-9 by Dow Jones Newswires in Barcelona.
GRAINS & OILSEEDS: The macro mood is mixed, as a weaker dollar offsets a generally risk-off tone across agricultural markets.
The U.S. dollar has slid against crucial commodity currencies like the Brazilian real, making it cheaper for international purchasers to buy dollar-denominated commodities like wheat and corn. On the other hand, continued trade and tariff uncertainty from the U.S. is keeping markets in risk-off mode, lowering appetite for agricultural commodities.
The market is awaiting the U.S. Federal Reserve policy decision on Wednesday. While the Fed is very unlikely to cut interest rates, comments from Chair Jerome Powell will likely move agricultural markets by influencing the strength of the dollar and overall risk sentiment, Peak Trading analysts say in a note.
Meanwhile on the weather front, the U.S. had rain in the southeast of the Corn Belt over the weekend, though extended forecasts for most of the Belt show warm and dry weather into mid-May--favorable conditions for planting.
South American weather looks favorable for production overall, with Brazilian forecasts turning drier into mid-May. The country's soybean harvest will wrap up fast. Meanwhile, Argentina's forecasts are for wet weather, which will slow harvests somewhat, Peak Trading says.
Chicago wheat futures are down 1.5% at $5.35 a bushel on Monday, while corn is down 2.2% on $4.59 a bushel. Soybean prices are down 0.7% at $10.51 a bushel.
SOFT COMMODITIES: Agricultural softs have generally fallen over the past week in thin trading, reflecting persistent trade tensions alongside improving supply outlooks.
Most major soft commodities have experienced continued volatility in prices and low volumes after President Trump's tariff announcements in early April sparked market turmoil.
Cocoa prices and coffee prices are both down around 5% in the week-to-date, though prices of both goods still remain historically elevated on supply-side concerns. Sugar has also slid on anticipated increases in Brazilian output in the upcoming harvest season, BMI analysts say in a note.
On Monday, cocoa is down 0.6% at $8,469.0 a metric ton, while coffee is up 1.4% at $3.91 a pound. Sugar is up 1.45% at $0.17 a pound.
Write to Joe Hoppe at joseph.hoppe@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
May 05, 2025 12:09 ET (16:09 GMT)
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