Morning Calls & Comments (9/15)
Corn and soybean futures modestly firmed toward the end of a two-sided overnight session as traders waited for the resumption of weekly USDA export sales data. Winter wheat futures faded to losses after posting fresh two-month highs. Malaysian palm oil futures fell 2.9%, while front-month crude oil futures are down more than $1. U.S. stock index futures signal a weaker open and the U.S. dollar index is down around 150 points.
Major U.S. railroads and unions representing 115,000 of their workers reached tentative agreement giving them better pay and improved working conditions, President Joe Biden said in a statement Thursday. A Labor Department official confirmed a deal “that balances the needs of workers, businesses, and our nation’s economy” was reached in the early hours of the morning on Thursday after 20 consecutive hours of negotiations between rail companies and union negotiators.
