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Here are the main highlights for some of Australia's key commodities and economic influences for this month. The full report provides an overview of the developments to watch in the upcoming weeks.
Spain has reported an outbreak of highly pathogenic H5N1 bird flu on a fattening turkey farm in the southwestern region of Extremadura, Reuters reported, citing the World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH) and Spanish authorities as its sources. The spread of avian influenza, commonly called bird flu, has ravaged flocks around the world, disrupting supply and fuelling higher food prices. Its spread to mammals, including dairy cows in the United States, has raised concerns among governments about a risk of human transmission. The outbreak killed almost the entire flock of 6,895 turkeys, with the 10 surviving birds slaughtered as a precaution, the report said.
Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT) soybean futures hit their highest level in more than a week on Thursday as technical buying helped the market recover from a three-month low reached on Monday, Reuters reports, citing analysts. Corn futures retreated after rising for the previous three sessions in a rebound from contract lows set on Monday. Both markets continued to face pressure from expectations for large US autumn harvests and mostly favourable crop weather in the world's biggest corn-producing country and second-largest soybean producer. "We're marching to a crop, and the weather looks non-threatening," said Don Roose, president of brokerage US Commodities. CBOT soybeans Sv1 were up 6 cents at $10.26-1/2 a bushel by 12:30 p.m. CDT (1730 GMT), after rising on Wednesday on hopes for increased demand for U.S. supplies from Indonesia and top importer China. US soybean export sales in the week ended July 10 reached 529,600 tons for 2025-26 shipment, above analysts' expectations for 150,000 to 400,000 tons. For corn, new-crop US export sales of 565,900 tons were within analysts' estimates. CBOT corn was down 3-3/4 cents at $4.20-1/4 a bushel. The December contract, which represents the crop that farmers will harvest this autumn, set a low of $4.07-1/2 on Monday. "While price weakness attracted opportunistic demand, a favourable weather outlook could well see lows tested again in the weeks ahead," Rabobank analysts said. US President Donald Trump added pressure on corn prices, analysts said, by saying on Wednesday that Coca-Cola had agreed to use cane sugar in its US beverages. Coca-Cola produced for the US market is typically sweetened with corn syrup. Analysts estimated that a little more than 400 million bushels of corn are used annually to make high fructose corn syrup, though not all of that is put into beverages. US corn production is projected at 15.7 billion bushels for 2025-26, and total usage is expected to be about 15.4 billion bushels, according to USDA data. In CBOT wheat, most-active futures were down 8 cents at $5.33-1/4 a bushel.
Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) live cattle futures backpedaled on Thursday after climbing to contract highs during the previous session, while hog futures jumped, reported Reuters. Traders projected the cattle market's setback would be short lived as futures remain too low compared to cash prices. Futures and cash prices have set records this year as U.S. cattle inventories have dwindled to their lowest levels in decades. Meatpackers, such as Tyson Foods, increasingly must compete to buy limited supplies of cattle from farmers to process into beef. CME August live cattle futures finished down 0.225 cent at 223.675 cents per pound after setting a contract high of 224.400 cents on Wednesday. CME August feeder cattle futures closed 0.575 cent lower at 325 cents per pound. "Every time we see breaks, the market finds support," a broker said. "Futures are way too low versus the cash." Strong cash prices for cattle and declining beef prices have squeezed meatpackers' profits. They were losing an estimated $174.35 per head of cattle they slaughtered on Thursday, according to HedgersEdge.com. Light trading of cattle in the cash market this week has been largely steady from last week, when prices climbed, traders said. "The cash market just doesn't break," the broker said. In demand news, weekly US beef export sales were 8,800 metric tons for 2025, down 24% from the previous week and 28% from the prior four-week average, the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) said. For pork, weekly US export sales of 17,100 metric tons for 2025 were down 30% from the previous week and 48% from the prior four-week average. The wholesale US pork carcass cutout price increased $1.58 to $113.32 per hundredweight on Thursday amid higher prices for bellies and loins, according to USDA data. CME August lean hog futures ended up 1.4 cents at 105.825 cents per pound.
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