By Kirk Maltais


--Wheat for July delivery rose 4.3% to $6.63 a bushel, with traders rushing to cover short positions in response to tensions in the Black Sea and tough weather in U.S. growing areas.

--Corn for July delivery rose 1.2% to $5.93 1/2 a bushel.

--Soybeans for July delivery rose 0.7% to $14.00 3/4 a bushel.


HIGHLIGHTS


About Face: After posting losses for roughly a month, wheat futures on the CBOT turned around Monday. Among the factors driving up wheat are Black Sea uncertainty and a USDA report Friday showing lower domestic production amid a damaged winter crop. Some of it is also technical. "Wheat was oversold and today is more about a correction," said Karl Setzer of Mid-Co Commodities. The short-covering in wheat carried corn and soybeans higher along with it.

Outside World: Strength in other markets also helped lift grains, said Tomm Pfitzenmaier of Summit Commodity Brokerage in a note. "The outside markets are generally supportive with the equity and crude oil markets firmer and dollar index a bit weaker," he said. Commodity markets across the board were stronger to begin the week, including industrial and precious metals.

Slower Rate: According to data from the National Oilseeds Processors Association, soybeans in the U.S. were crushed at a rate of 173.2 million bushels in April, which is down 3.7% from March, but up 2% from the same month last year. Traders were expecting the rate to be roughly 174.2 million bushels higher, said Terry Reilly of Futures International in a note following the report's release.


INSIGHT


Down to the Wire: Tensions are ratcheted up in the Black Sea ahead of the exporation of the export deal between Russia and Ukraine looks to be something traders will keep a close eye on. No talks are scheduled between the parties ahead of the deal's expiration on Thursday. Additionally, uncertainty with Turkey's election this past weekend has grain traders further fretting the chances of survival for the deal. "Erdogan has been a key component in maintaining the grain initiative, while also a friend of Russia's President Putin," said Arlan Suderman of StoneX in a note. "There's no doubt this has an impact on the grain initiative talk dynamics, but all of this continues to be under somewhat of a shroud of secrecy."

A Long Way to Go: Inspections of U.S. corn exports turned higher in this week's report, although they still remain far behind last year's pace. For the week ended May 11, the USDA said corn export inspections totaled 1.17 million metric tons, higher than 974,450 tons inspected last week. Yearly inspections remain well below last year's levels, with inspections totaling 26.05 million tons, which is down 33% from the previous year.


AHEAD


--The EIA will release its weekly ethanol production and stocks report at 10:30 a.m. ET Wednesday.

--The USDA will release its weekly export sales report at 8:30 a.m. ET Thursday.

--The USDA will release its monthly Cattle on Feed report at 3 p.m. ET Friday.

--The USDA will release its monthly Chickens and Eggs report at 3 p.m. ET Friday.

--The CFTC will release its weekly Commitment of Traders report at 3:30 p.m. ET Friday.


Write to Kirk Maltais at kirk.maltais@wsj.com


(END) Dow Jones Newswires

05-15-23 1608ET