FOREX TRADING INN

Wednesday, April 8, 2009

US Cash Hogs Midday: Bids Flat-Lower; Most Plants Are Full

KANSAS CITY (Dow Jones)--Slaughter hog prices in the Midwest Wednesday are flat to lower, and most plants are reportedly done buying for this week.

Demand is expected to remain slow through the weekend and could be light on Monday as well since several plants will be taking a day off between now and then, said livestock dealers and market managers.

Two plants will be down Friday, and nine others will be dark Monday in observance of the Easter holiday Sunday. With the plant closures seen for Friday and Monday, the estimates for those daily figures are around 410,000 and 300,000 head, respectively. Projections for Saturday's slaughter are from 45,000 to 50,000 head.

Sales of pork domestically and in the export markets have not been active enough to encourage packers to chase after hog supplies and process more animals, analysts and livestock dealers said. Processing margins have been thin to negative throughout most of this year, so packers are trying to hold the line on costs.

A few plants may need another load or two for later in the week but the buyers expect to be able to purchase the hogs at flat to weaker prices. Selling interest, however, has turned extremely slow as well, and most producers are willing to wait until next week before offering additional loads for sale in hopes that prices will move higher by then.

Prices at the terminal markets were reported mostly steady with one location down $1 per hundredweight. Top prices are reported from $34 to $39 on a live basis.

-By Curt Thacker, Dow Jones Newswires; 913-322-5178; curt.thacker@dowjones.com

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ICE FCOJ Review:Rallies On Charts, Underpinned By Fundamentals

NEW YORK (Dow Jones)--ICE Futures U.S. frozen concentrated orange juice rallied on technical buying Wednesday as demand ideas and supply concerns underpinned prices.

May juice settled up 380 points at 81.05 cents a pound, off of the 81.50 high, and the July contract settled up 335 points at 83 cents.

OJ dipped in early dealings to the 77.10 session low basis May, but quickly regained balance. The contract surged through resistance at the 78- and 79-cent levels to hit 81.50, the contract's highest price point since Jan. 22. May juice trimmed gains to below the 80-cent level but reclaimed ground and settled stronger on the day.

Analysts said juice could advance to the 82-cent level, a high hit Jan. 22, and the 83-cent level on continued technical buying.

Aside from technical buying, supply and demand conditions are adding to FCOJ's appeal, analyst said. Ongoing drought conditions in the northern part of Florida have been adding to gains during the week, though the trees are blooming satisfactorily and recent rains have taken the edge off of dry conditions, said an Orlando-based FCOJ broker.

Florida's 2008-09 orange crop projection is expected to be left unchanged at 158 million boxes when the U.S. Agriculture Department issues its April crop production report at 8:30 a.m. EDT Thursday, analysts said.

Increased consumption of reconstituted orange juice in place of chilled juice beverages is adding support amid the tight economic situation, the broker said.

Added support is springing from ideas of a weaker orange crop from Brazil, the leading producer of FCOJ, ahead of the U.S., said Jimmy Tintle, analyst at Transworld Futures in Tampa. Weather premium may be trickling into the market ahead of the June-July onset of the Florida tropical storm and hurricane season, he added. These bullish factors could push orange juice futures to the $1.20-a-pound level by mid-September, Tintle said.

ICE FCOJ open interest deceased by 30 positions Tuesday to total 28,296, the exchange reported.

Volume was estimated at 7,061 contracts, according to exchange data. In options, approximately 1,057 calls and 389 puts traded.


ICE         Settle      Change    Range (At time of settlement)
May         $0.8105     up  380   $0.7710-$0.8150
Jly         $0.8300     up  335   $0.7920-$0.8325

-By Holly Henschen, Dow Jones Newswires; 201-938-2338; holly.henschen@dowjones.com

Forex: GBP/USD: Pound rejected by the 1.4745 level

FXstreet.com (Barcelona) – Sellers seem to have flocked to the GBP/USD as the pair reached 1.4745 level, sending the pair below minor support 1.4675 towards 1.4635 intra-day low.

On the downside, in case downside reaction is strong enough to break below 1.4635 level, next support levels would come at 1.4580 (Apr 7 low) and 1.4560 (100 day moving average). On the upside, above 1.4745 intra-day high, next resistance level lies now at 1.4776 (Apr 7 high) and, above here, 1.4875.

According to Valeria Bednarik, collaborator at FXstreet.com, traders are squaring positions ahead of Easter holidays: "Gbp remains also slightly bullish, but contained in a tight range around the 1.4700 zone, as traders square positions ahead of the Easter Holiday. Indicators are mostly flat in the hourly chart, not giving clear signs of further bias, while bigger time frames suggest some upside pressure, limited by the 1.4780 zone."

ited by the 1.4780 zone."