DTN Closing Grain Comments    04/17 13:53
   Row-Crop Futures Mixed Friday, Energies Drop After Iran Claims Strait Is Open

   Friday was a day of general risk-off trading, with crude oil futures (and
other energy markets) leading the way lower after Iran declared the Strait of
Hormuz to be open to commercial vessels following the Israel-Lebanon ceasefire
agreement on Thursday. There are certainly still a lot of details to iron out,
with President Trump also stating that the U.S. blockade of Iran will remain in
place. Assuming the hostilities are winding to a close, it remains an
uncertainty of how quickly traffic through the Persian Gulf will return to any
degree of normalcy. The Dow Jones Industrial Average moved over 1,000 points
higher at points on Friday due to the developing news. Row-crop futures
initially moved lower along with energy futures but eventually staged a
late-morning comeback, with soybean futures managing to turn positive as
traders likely view a potential end to the conflict in the Middle East as a
long-term positive to the market via U.S.-China relations.

Rhett Montgomery
Senior Market Analyst

GENERAL COMMENTS:

   May corn closed up 1/4 cent and July corn was down 1/4 cent. May soybeans
closed up 3 1/2 cents and July soybeans were up 2 1/2 cents. May KC wheat
closed down 6 cents, May Chicago wheat was down 7 1/4 cents, May MIAX
Minneapolis wheat was up 1 1/2 cents.