Good morning. Happy Friday. The ag space is choppy and has seen mostly two-sided price action so far to start wrapping up the week, with all three of corn, beans and wheat trading unchanged to slightly lower in the overnight session. Following strong up moves on Thursday, key for today will be whether any additional information comes out regarding the pending SRE decision by a US district court and also whether any additional information is seen regarding Treasury Secretary Bessent's claims that a China deal is close. On top of these things, the markets will also likely see macro influence to wrap up the week this week as Fed Chair Jerome Powell is set to speak at the Jackson Hole economic summit in Wyoming later this morning. Corn futures to kick-off Friday are trading unchanged to a penny higher, soybean futures are trading 1-3 cents higher, and the Chicago wheat market is trading 1-2 cents lower. Products continue to trade mixed, with soybean meal down around 50 cents/ton and soybean oil up around 5 points. Outside markets are mostly higher, crude oil futures are up 20-30 cents/bbl, the Dow Jones index is up 120 points and the US$ index is up around 10 points; the S&P500 is up 10 points and the NASDAQ is up 30 points.

Today's Reports: Monthly Cattle on Feed; Monthly Cold Storage; CFTC Commitment of Traders

• USDA will release updated monthly cattle on feed data for the month of August this afternoon after the markets close. According to a Bloomberg survey of analysts, traders see the report showing the US feedlot herd as of August 1 at 10.883 mil head, which would be down 2% from last year. Placements in July are seen down 9% from last year at 1.548 mil head, while marketings in the month are seen down 6% from last year at 1.747 mil head.

• The Buenos Aires Grain Exchange, in a weekly update, said that 11.3% of the country's wheat area was under temporary water stress but added that still 97.3% of the crop was rated either good or excellent. The report also showed Argentine corn harvest at 95.9% complete, which is 2.8% behind last year at this time and 1.1% behind the five-year average.

• Along with the news stories mentioned above, the other fundamental driver for today and the early part of next week will be Pro Farmer's tour-based corn yield estimates and soybean pod count figures, which are expected later today after the markets close. On day four of the tour yesterday, scouts found corn yield potential in both Iowa and Minnesota that was above both last year and the recent three-year average, while soybean pod counts in the two states also checked the same boxes.

• The tour estimated average yields across Iowa at 198.43 bu/acre, which compares to 192.79 last year and the three-year average of 186.47. Pod counts in the state averaged 1,384.38, which compares to 1,312.31 last year and the three-year average of 1,225.72. For MN, tour estimated the state's corn yield at 202.86 bu/acre compared to 164.9 last year and the three-year average of 178.88, while soybean pod counts averaged 1,247.86 pods compared to 1,036.59 last year and the three-year average of 1,040.78.

• The International Grains Council (IGC) in a monthly update on Thursday raised their estimate of world grain stocks in the 2025/26 season from 582 mil tons last month to 597 mil tons this month, citing mostly higher corn production figures out of the US. The group sees corn stocks in the season now at 294 mil tons compared to 278 mil tons previously, while soybean ending stocks are seen at 85 mil tons vs 83 mil previously.

• In Europe, government data out of Ukraine shows grain harvest so far in the current season at 27.3 MMTs vs 28.6 MMTs through the same period last year, while French crop body FranceAgriMer said in a weekly update this morning that 62% of the country's corn crop was in good or excellent condition, down from 65% last week and 76% in the same week last year.

• The USDA's monthly livestock slaughter report, released yesterday, showed commercial red meat production in the US in the month of July at 4.36 bil lbs, which was up 3% from June but still down more than 4% from July of last year. Beef production at 2.19 bil lbs was up 5% on the month and down 5% on the year, while pork production at 2.159 bil lbs was up 2% on the month but down 4% on the year. To view the full report from the USDA, please click here.

• Barge shipments down the Mississippi River in the week ending August 16th were seen at 667k tons, which was down nearly 22% from the week prior. Corn shipments at 366k tons were down just over 6%, while soybean shipments at 252k tons were down 36%. STL barge freight rates in the week were seen at $18.51/short ton, up 60 cents from the week prior.

• The US and the EU issued a joint-statement on Thursday indicating the two sides had reached a framework trade agreement, with the move seen as a first step towards a broader trade deal. Amongst other items in the agreement, the UE pledged to invest upwards of $600 billion across US strategic sectors through 2028, and also said they would purchase $750 billion worth of US LNG (liquified natural gas), oil and nuclear products and $40 billion in US AI chips. Also included in the agreement is a 15% tariff from the US on most EU goods.

• We have little to update on weekend weather this morning, as model forecasts for the next 48-72 hours are much like runs seen in previous days this week. The bulk of the Corn Belt will see dry conditions while there are some scattered shower chances through the north and the northwest and temperatures will be seen average to below average, and look to continue dropping into the first part of next week.

• Then through next week, rains are expected to fill in in the south/southwest, with the EU model predicting upwards of 5-6" through parts of OK and northern TX by the end of the week that could possibly cause flash flood concerns. Both the southeast and the northeast also look to see some sort of rainfall next week, but the Corn Belt will continue being short-changed for the most part according to the models. Cool temps will help though, as 10-15 day temperature outlooks still show zero sign of above normal heat returning into September 6th.

• Have a great and safe weekend and enjoy the cooler weather!