Market Recap: Cotton Futures Near $1

U.S. lean-hog futures rallied Monday, pointing to swelling confidence that pork prices have bottomed seasonally and are primed to rise. February hog futures rose 115 to 86.47, April hog futures rose 145 to 88.50.
 

U.S. livestock futures opened the week higher Monday due to a flurry of bullish demand signals and supportive outside markets. February Live Cattle 5, basically unchanged, at $124, January feeder cattle rose 27 to $151.

US wheat futures ended higher as South America crop worries lifted grains generally. March wheat in Chicago ended up 9 1/4 at $6.19, and March wheat in KC climbed 6 1/2 to $6.73.
 

US corn futures ended higher, rallying on improving export demand and South America crop worries. March corn ended up 8 1/2 to $6.20.
 

US soybean futures spiked to a 2-week high, climbing as weekend rains in Argentina fell short of expectations, Soy-product futures leapt in unison with soybeans. March soybeans ended up 30 ½ at $12.17, March soy meal gained 9.10 at $321 while March soy oil rose 99 to 51.42.

Cotton futures on ICE gained during the first day of the Lunar New Year holiday celebrated in several Asian countries, including top producer and consumer China. March contract settled up 77 at 99.37, and the May contract gained 83 to close at $99.46.

Gold and silver futures both settled at six-week highs Monday as a weaker dollar boosted demand for alternative investments amid a murky economic outlook. February Gold rallied $14.30 to $1,678.30 an ounce, and Mar silver closed at $32.27, up 59.5 cents
 

Crude oil futures settled higher Monday after the European Union agreed to slap an embargo on oil imports from Iran beginning July 1. March crude gained $1.25 to $99.58 a barrel, February distillates gained 2.14 cents to $3.00 a gallon, while gasoline dropped a fraction to $2.77 a gallon.
 

Natural gas futures surged Monday after Chesapeake Energy Corp. (CHK) announced it was curtailing production in response to low gas prices. February Natural gas gained 18.2 cents to $2.52.
 

The markets ended the day little changed after rallying to the highest level since July last week as traders cautiously eyed debt talks in Greece and awaited a bounty of corporate earnings on Tuesday. The Dow fell 11 to close at 12,708, the Nasdaq closed at 2,784, down 2 ½ and the S&P 500 gained a fraction to 1,316.