Sources of Market Information

Transcription

1 Sources of Market Information Brian W. Gould Senior Scientist, Wisconsin Center for Dairy Research and Department of Agricultural and Applied Economics, The University of Wisconsin-Madison In order for you as a milk producer to achieve your marketing objectives, it is important that you have current, accurate, and accessible information about the input- and output-markets you face. Traditionally, you may have relied on dairy-related newsletters, publications, government reports, and material supplied by your local extension agents. With the evolution of the Internet, you now have almost instantaneous access to cash- and futures-marketdata, government periodicals, and dairy outlook reports that in the past may have taken considerable time to reach you. This increased access has greatly improved the potential for you to make input and marketing decisions that will help you more completely achieve your production/marketing objectives. In the following section we provide a review of Internet-based sites from which dairy farm operators can obtain marketing related information. This list is not meant to be complete. With the increased access to the Internet, the number of dairy-related web sites has increased tremendously and continues to grow. We have included space at the end of this document for you to add new sites to the list as you find them. The first web site you should visit is the University of Wisconsin Dairy Marketing Website ( The Department of Agricultural and Applied Economics ( and Wisconsin Center for Dairy Research ( have developed a website that is concerned with dairy markets in general and the use of dairy-based futures and options in specific. This web site has an extensive collection of historical data, current data, research publications, extension publications, market outlook, and educational materials to assist you in making more informed production and marketing decisions. This site contains daily settle prices for the dairy-based futures and options contracts traded at the Chicago Mercantile Exchange. This data is updated on a daily basis. There also are graphical analyses of the CME daily settle prices for dairy-based futures contracts, which are updated on a daily basis. There are also a large number of other graphical analyses contained in this site. The following list of sites is a partial set of links obtained from the Other Useful Sites section of the University of Wisconsin Dairy Marketing Website, For a more complete set of sites, refer to this website. Sources of Dairy Related Information As with any other agricultural sector, there is a tremendous amount of production, price, stock, import, export, and other market-level data that can be obtained from the Internet. The problem you face is how not to be overwhelmed by the abundance of information. Below is a list of web sites that contain dairy-related market information: Calendar of USDA/NASS Reports Release Dates ( This site contains a calendar of when dairy and non-dairy statistical reports are made available over the Internet by the National Agricultural Statistical Service. 1

2 Calendar of USDA Reports Release Dates ( This site contains a calendar of when dairy and non-dairy statistical reports are made available over the Internet by various USDA departments/agencies. USDA Advance Price and Class Announcements ( Monthly announcements of Advance Prices by the 23 rd of the month preceding the effective month for Class I milk and by the 5 th of the following month for Class II, Class III and Class IV Prices. USDA/AMS-Dairy Division ( This site is the home page of the USDA s Agricultural Marketing Services Dairy Division. This site can be used as a gateway to a variety of dairy market related information. USDA/AMS-Dairy Market News ( This is the AMS s dairy market news site that contains the latest information about cash markets, including the latest BFP cash prices at the Chicago Mercantile Exchange and a link to the weekly Dairy Market News publication. USDA/AMS-Dairy Related Sites ( This is a collection of links to USDA and NASS web sites containing dairy market data, including data on stocks, prices, production, etc. National Agricultural Statistical Service ( The National Agricultural Statistical Service web site contains information not only related to the dairy industry, but to other agricultural sectors as well. Included in this site are data, graphical analyses, publications, and links to individual state branches of NASS. Wisconsin Agricultural Statistical Service ( This is the web site of the Wisconsin branch of NASS. This is a good source of a variety of state and national information. State information includes county specific production data, crop weather, dairy prices and production, estimates of farm numbers, field crop information, land sales data and data on livestock production and prices. AMS Dairy Market News ( This is the Internet version of the Dairy Market News you used to receive by mail. It is published every Friday and is available to you almost immediately via this site. This publication contains data on dairy cash and futures markets. Special articles appear that are concerned with current events impacting the dairy industry. AMS Dairy Product Prices ( This website contains a historical (and current) collection of dairy product cash prices by week since Prices for butter, cheese, non-fat dry milk, whey, casein and other products are contained within the files at this site. The files are in PDF format. USDA Data Depository at Cornell University ( The USDA has contracted with Cornell University to be the central storage facility for the various agricultural related statistics collected by USDA. This is a very useful web site as it contains a search engine which allows you to enter in a set of keywords and the various databases are searched for these key words. All USDA production, price, outlook, stock, and other marketing related information is contained at this site. Also, this site can be used 2

3 to subscribe to various publications of USDA/NASS-generated data that will be sent to you automatically via . Once you connect to the above web-site address, click on the choice Reports by , which appears on the top of the page. Follow the directions, and you will eventually be able to identify, in one sitting, the reports you want sent to your address for free. Note that, in order to take advantage of this feature, you must have an address. 30-Day History of Daily Cash Cheddar at the CME ( This site shows the previous 30 days of price data for cheddar cheese at the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME). Remember, the CME replaced the Green Bay Cheese exchange as the primary site where cash trading of cheese occurs. University of Wisconsin Dairy Futures Website ( The Department of Agricultural and Applied Economics ( and the Wisconsin Center for Dairy Research ( have developed a website that is concerned with dairy markets in general and the use of dairy-based futures and options in particular. The Dairy Futures Website has an extensive collection of historical data, current data, research publications, extension publications, market outlook, and educational materials to assist you in making more informed production and marketing decisions. The data section of this website is extensive. If there is information that you need to better enable you to make marketing decisions and you do not currently find it on this site, the authors encourage you to contact them to add the desired data to this website. Cheese Market News ( and Cheese Reporter ( Although both of these sites contain information that primarily impacts cheese manufacturers, such information obviously has an impact on your bottom line also. In addition to news items, these sites maintain current cash and futures price information. State of California Dairy Industry Statistics ( Statistics describing California s dairy industry, including current dairy milk and product prices, are included in this site. Daily Spot Cash Prices ( This site provided by the Downes-O Neill brokerage firm provides a summary of daily spot cash market activity in dairy products at the CME. Web Sites Concerned with the Use of Dairy-Based Futures and Options There is no doubt that the market risk associated with the dairy industry has increased tremendously over the last 10 years. In response to this increased price risk, dairy farm operators are turning to the use of newly created dairy futures markets to help manage this risk. There are a number of web sites that have been developed to provide current information about these markets. These sites are listed below: Web Sites Originating from the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME): Chicago Mercantile Exchange ( The CME is the primary commodity exchange to trade dairy-based futures and options. It currently accounts for the largest volume of such transactions. The 3

4 above website address is for the general CME website. Dairy-Related Futures and Options at the CME ( This is the website at the CME that contains information specific to dairy-related futures and options traded at the CME. Contained in this website are addresses to sites that provide the latest futures and options settlement prices and volumes. 10-Minute Delayed Futures Prices from the CME. The CME makes it very easy to obtain current information concerning the trading of dairy-based futures and options. One set of sites gives a 10 minute delayed record of futures prices for following commodities: Class III: ( Class IV: ( Butter: ( 20-Minute Delayed Options Prices from the CME. Option prices for Class III and Class IV contracts at the CME can be obtained by using the following addresses to 20-minute-delayed information: Class III: ( Class IV: ( Butter: ( Previous Day s Futures and Options Settlement Prices: The previous trading day s futures and options settlement prices can be obtained from the CME using the following addresses: Class III Futures: ( Class III Options: ( Mini-Class III Options: ( Mid-Size Class III Options: ( Daily Dairy Report ( This newsletter contains a brief review of the previous day s dairy futures and options trading activity at the CME, as well as a very brief review of events impacting the dairy industry. Other Sites Describing the Use of Dairy Futures and Options: USDA DOPP Program ( The USDA s site describing the latest round of the Dairy Options Pilot Program is located here. Today s Dairy Prices ( Similar to the Daily Dairy Report noted above, this site provided by the Downes-O Neill brokerage firm, provides an overview of current dairy futures/options trading activity at the CME. University of Wisconsin Dairy Futures Website: The Department of Agricultural and Applied Economics ( and Wisconsin Center for Dairy Research ( have developed a website that is concerned with dairy markets in general and the use of dairy-based futures and options in specific. The Dairy Futures Website ( has an extensive collection of historical data, current data, research publications, extension publications, market outlook, and educational materials 4

5 to assist you in making more informed production and marketing decisions. This site contains daily settle prices for the dairy-based futures and options contracts traded at the Chicago Mercantile Exchange. This data is updated on a daily basis. There also are graphical analyses of the CME daily settle prices for dairybased futures contracts, which are updated on a daily basis. Jerry Dryer Consulting Group ( This firm, located in Chicago, does a considerable amount of trading in dairy futures and options. Most of their services are for a fee. National Program for Integrated Dairy Risk Management and Research ( This is a USDA-sponsored research project, in which the University of Wisconsin-Madison and the University of Wisconsin-Platteville are cooperating. The general objective of this project is to develop educational materials so that dairy-farm operators may better incorporate a variety of risk management strategies (including the use of dairy-based futures and options) in their farming operations. Downes-O Neill Dairy Consultants ( This private consulting company out of Chicago does a considerable amount of trading in dairy futures and options. Most of their services are for a fee, but their website is freely accessible and contains market commentary, current dairy market statistics, and other dairy market information that you might find useful. Web Sites Providing Dairy Industry News Dairy Situation and Outlook. This outlook commentary is provided by Prof. Bob Cropp, Dairy Marketing Specialist at the University of Wisconsin-Madison ( Each month Prof. Cropp provides his dairy market outlook. This PDF file is located on the University of Wisconsin Dairy Futures Website ( Dairy Outlook ( This site is maintained by Prof. Ken Bailey at Penn. State University. He provides a more long-term analysis of what is happening in U.S. dairy markets. Grain Situation and Outlook. This outlook commentary is provided by Prof. Randy Fortenbery, Marketing Extension Specialist at the University of Wisconsin- Madison.( Each month Prof. Fortenbery provides his grain market outlook. This PDF file is located on the University of Wisconsin Dairy Futures Website ( Wislink ( This is the website of the Wisconsin Milk Marketing Board. It contains a variety of types of information and an extensive set of links to other dairy-related web sites. Hoard s Dairyman ( This is the on-line version of Hoard s Dairyman. Farm Journal ( This is the on-line version of the Farm Journal. Texas A&M University Dairy Marketing and Economics ( This is another useful site providing news and data relating to various aspects of the dairy industry. 5

6 Grain Market Data Sources Current Daily Wisconsin Elevator Prices ( This site, maintained by the Wisconsin Dept. of Ag, Trade, and Consumer Protection, provides a daily summary of Wisconsin elevator prices for corn, soybeans and oats. Wisconsin Monthly Grain Summaries ( This site, maintained by the Wisconsin Dept. of Ag, Trade, and Consumer Protection, provides monthly summaries of Wisconsin elevator prices for corn, soybeans and oats. Wisconsin Yearly Grain Summaries ( This site, maintained by the Wisconsin Dept. of Ag, Trade, and Consumer Protection, provides annual summaries of Wisconsin elevator prices for corn, soybeans and oats. Wisconsin Weekly Ag. Summaries (Including Grains) ( This site maintained, by the Wisconsin Dept. of Ag, Trade, and Consumer Protection, provides weekly summary of Wisconsin agricultural markets summary. Wisconsin Daily Ag. Summaries (Including Grains) ( This site, maintained by the Wisconsin Dept. of Ag, Trade, and Consumer Protection, provides daily summary of Wisconsin agricultural markets summary. Chicago Board of Trade ( The CBOT site provides prices for futures and options in corn, soybean, wheat, and oats, ranging from 10-minute delays to near real-time quotes. Livestock Market Data Sources Various Wisconsin Livestock Data ( This site, maintained by the Wisconsin Dept. of Ag, Trade, and Consumer Protection, provides a central location for a variety of Wisconsin Livestock Data Weekly Summaries Wisconsin Holstein Calves at Livestock Auctions ( This site provides a weekly summary of Wisconsin Holstein calve auction values. Weekly Summaries of Wisconsin Direct Hog Markets ( This site, maintained by the Wisconsin Dept. of Ag, Trade, and Consumer Protection, provides a weekly summary of Wisconsin hog market conditions. Weekly Summaries of Wisconsin Livestock Markets ( This site, maintained by the Wisconsin Dept. of Ag, Trade, and Consumer Protection, provides a summary of Wisconsin livestock markets. Wisconsin Daily Ag. Summaries (Including Livestock) ( This site, maintained by the Wisconsin Dept. of Ag, Trade, and Consumer Protection, provides daily summary of Wisconsin agricultural markets summary. 6

7 Wisconsin Daily Dairy Auction Sales ( This site, maintained by the Wisconsin Dept. of Ag, Trade, and Consumer Protection, provides a daily summary of Wisconsin dairy auction transactions. American Jersey Cattle Association ( This site provides information on upcoming sales and lists bids entered during recent silent auctions. Other Sites of Interest USDA, Risk Management Agency ( This is the web site of USDA s Risk Management Agency. It contains a variety of information concerning all aspects of risk management. Center for Dairy Profitability ( This University of Wisconsin Center provides a variety of educational materials designed to assist you in the management of your dairy farm business. Program on Dairy Marketing and Policy ( The Cornell University Program on Dairy Marketing and Policy maintains this site. It contains a variety of data concerning the status of the U.S. dairy industry and the implications of recent policy changes such as the proposed Federal Order Reform. Alto Dairy Cooperative ( Alto Dairy Cooperative was one of the first dairy manufacturers to offer a forward pricing program based on dairy-based futures and options. Take a look at this site and see how their forward pricing system works. USDA Weekly Weather and Crop Bulletin ( A site maintained by USDA containing weekly summaries of weather outlook and crop conditions. Storm Prediction Center ( This site, maintained by the NOAA, monitors and forecasts severe and non-severe thunderstorms, tornadoes, and other hazardous weather phenomena. Univ. of Wisconsin Center for Cooperatives ( The University of Wisconsin Center for Cooperatives maintain this website containing a variety of information for those interested in agricultural and nonagricultural cooperatives. National Agricultural Risk Library ( This site contains a variety of resources for those interested in price and non-price risk management. International Dairy Foods Association ( This organization, headquartered in Washington, D.C., posts some interesting facts concerning trends in international dairy-product consumption. 7