Market Recap: Grains & Oilseeds End Lower on Economic Fears

U.S. livestock futures rallied sharply on Friday as investors prepared for the possibility of a seasonal rebound in red meat demand.

Lean hog futures extended their prior-day rally on growing suspicion that pork prices are poised for a seasonal upturn.

February hogs were up 165 at 85.60, April hogs closed up 47 at 87.05.
February live Cattle rose 122 to $122, January feeder cattle reached a record-high closing price of $150, up 110.

US wheat futures end lower amid spillover pressure from corn and worries about Europe's debt problems. March wheat in Chicago ended down 2 3/4 to $6.02; and March wheat in KC closed down 3 to $6.70.
 

US corn futures ended lower, extending their slump on Thursday's USDA report and fresh worries about the economy. March corn fell 12 to $5.99.
 

US soybean futures ended lower, declining as traders extract weather premium from prices, Soy product futures tumbled with soybeans. March soy ended down 24 1/4 at $11.58, March soy meal dropped $5.60 to $301.50, and March soy oil fell 1.17 to 50.29.

Cotton traded lower after a higher opening, the strong dollar weighed on prices. March cotton fell 22 to close at $95.47, and the May contract fell 17 to $95.08.

Gold prices fell on Friday for the first time in four days as cautious investors moved to the sidelines ahead of expected credit-ratings downgrades in the euro zone. February gold fell $16.90 to $1,630.80, and February silver fell 60 to $29.49.

Crude futures fell Friday in tandem with a slumping euro as Standard & Poor's prepared to downgrade France's credit rating, adding new fears about Europe's economy. February crude dropped 40 cents to $98.70 a barrel, February gasoline gained a fraction to $2.73 a gallon, and February distillates fell 2.69 cents to $3.02 a gallon.
 

Natural-gas futures prices fell 1% Friday, capping a week-long slide of near 13%, as a growing oversupply pushed prices to a fresh 28-month low of $2.67 per million British thermal units. February natural gas fell 2.7 cents.
 

Wall Street came back from heavy losses in afternoon action as traders weighed a flurry of media reports suggesting Standard & Poor's will soon slice the credit rating of several eurozone countries. The Dow fell 48 to finish the week at 12,422, the Nasdaq closed at 2,710, down 14 and the S&P 500 fell 6 to close at 1,289.