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Top 5 Things to Watch
Sunday, February 16, 2025 2:20PM CST

OMAHA (DTN) -- Here are the Top 5 things the DTN Newsroom is tracking for the week of Feb. 16. Watch for coverage of these and other topics through the week on our subscription platforms as well as on www.DTNPF.com.

Note that all report release times are Central Standard Time unless otherwise noted.

1. Markets closed Monday: U.S commodity and equities markets are closed Feb. 17 for the Presidents Day holiday. It's also a holiday in Canada, known as Family Day or by another name depending on the province. The DTN newsroom also will be closed. Market reports for subscribers will return with our Early Word and Before the Bell commentaries Tuesday morning.

2. New USDA Secretary: We'll be tracking the early actions of the newly confirmed head of USDA, Brooke Rollins, as she takes the reins of "the people's department." There are a lot of questions about USDA job cuts, program shutdowns, and other actions that will hopefully be clarified once her team is fully installed. Rollins unfortunately missed a chance to take on some of those questions directly when she attended the National Farm Machinery Show in Louisville late last Friday after most of the press was gone. She did walk the trade show floor after hours.

3. Corn fundamentals support: Tightening global corn supplies continue to cast a longer-term bullish outlook, and the pause on key tariffs helps soften bearish pressure as we go into the shortened trade week.

4. Winter weather update: Another cold blast heads down into the Midwest. Snow showers will move through the Northern and Central Plains early this week, and an increased risk for wintry precipitation extends down into Oklahoma and northern Texas. Midweek that will move east from the Plains and create more widespread rain into the Mississippi Delta and Southeast, with a wintry mix and snow across the Ohio Valley.

5. Economic reports for the week: Monday exchanges are closed for Presidents Day holiday. Tuesday at 7:30 a.m. the Empire State Manufacturing Survey and Homebuilder Confidence Index are released. At 10 a.m. we'll see weekly Grain Inspections, and at 2 p.m. Livestock, Dairy and Poultry Outlooks, USDA Ag Projections and the Chicken and Eggs reports are released. Wednesday reports start at 7:30 a.m. with Housing Starts and Building Permits. At 1 p.m. we'll see minutes of most-recent Federal Reserve committee meeting. At 2 p.m. Broiler Hatchery numbers are out. Thursday at 7:30 a.m. Initial Jobless Claims and Philadelphia Fed Manufacturing Survey data is out. At 9 a.m. we'll see latest Leading Economic Indicators. At 10 a.m. is the EIA Weekly Petroleum Status including ethanol production and stocks, followed by 10:30 a.m. release of the Weekly Economic Index. At 2 p.m., Livestock Slaughter numbers wrap up the day. Friday we'll see Grain Export Sales numbers at 7:30 a.m., then 8:45 a.m. release of S&P Flash Services and Manufacturing PMI. At 9 a.m. Consumer Sentiment and Existing Home Sales figures are out. At 2 p.m. we'll see Poultry Slaughter and the updated Cattle on Feed data. Note: The CFTC Commitment of Traders report, normally out Friday afternoons may be held until Monday due to the short trade week.

DTN bonus content: The February World Agricultural Supply and Demand Estimates (WASDE) report dropped Feb. 11, and with few updates expected for U.S. balance sheets, the market's attention was locked on the Southern Hemisphere, where harvest for the major grains is in view. In our latest Field Posts podcast called "E231: Latin America in the Spotlight in February WASDE," hosted by Sarah Mock, DTN's Lead Analyst Rhett Montgomery guides us through the latest from USDA. He walks us through the critical updates to global balance sheets and helps us understand the perhaps counterintuitive market moves that came as a result of the reports.

Then he dives deeper into the world weather picture, and what wild cards remain for what looks to be a bin-busting Latin American crop. He also examines the wheat picture to understand demand adjustments and shifting global stocks. Finally, Montgomery talks about recent trade and tariff announcements coming out of the White House, and how he thinks these risks may (and may not) be getting priced into current market prices.

You can listen to DTN Field Posts podcasts at https://www.dtnpf.com/…, https://www.buzzsprout.com/… and they're also available on podcast hosting sites such as Apple Podcasts and Spotify.

Watch for the latest news at www.dtnpf.com, and follow and like our Facebook page at www.facebook.com/dtnprogressivefarmer. You can find our news on Instagram as well. Give us a follow @dtn.agnews


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