Agriculture: grains and livestock gains offset softs slump

The Bloomberg Commodity Index Agriculture Total Return sector has endured an uneven start to the year, leaving the headline index broadly unchanged year-to-date, concealing a pronounced divergence across individual markets. Strength in grains – most notably soybeans and wheat—and continued resilience in livestock have been offset by sharp declines across soft commodities, led by coffee, sugar, and particularly cocoa. Grains: Soybean oil leads the complex as wheat tries to build a base Grain markets digested the latest WASDE report with a mixed response. Soybeans advanced, corn held broadly steady and wheat softened as traders assessed updated projections for U.S. and global stockpiles at the end of the 2026–27 season. Despite raising its estimate for Brazil’s soybean production to 180 million metric tons, up from 178 million and above average analyst expectations, soybeans rose as the USDA left its U.S. export forecast unchanged while noting that China could step up purchases of ...