Central banks and key global figures have expressed nearly unanimous support for U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell, emphasizing the importance of the Fed's independence. Chicago Federal Reserve President Austan Goolsbee stated, "You're going to get inflation come roaring back if you try to take away the independence of the central bank."
The Fed fund futures forward curve indicates the next rate cut is expected at the conclusion of the June 2026 FOMC meeting. This meeting will be the first following the end of Powell's term as Chairman in May.
U.S. stock index futures opened higher on Friday. Asian markets closed mostly lower, while European markets traded lower early in the session. The U.S. dollar index was slightly weaker, down 0.06 at the time of reporting.
Commodity markets were mostly higher at the day's start. The Energies sector was awaiting the next social media post by the U.S. president.
The corn market was quietly higher early Friday. The March contract posted a 1.5-cent trading range overnight on volume of 10,000 contracts and was up 0.5 cents pre-dawn. It continues to hold above $4.20 and its Tuesday low of $4.1725. The previous Commitments of Traders report showed Watson holding a net-long futures position of 60,110 contracts as of January 6, a decrease of 6,920 contracts. March then lost 24.25 cents from January 6 to January 13, indicating the net-long position might have been erased. National average basis was calculated at 36.0 cents under March futures Thursday night, compared to 37.0 cents under last Friday.
Soybeans were also quietly higher pre-dawn, with the March contract up 2.0 cents on volume of about 15,000 contracts. If March closes higher today, it would mark three consecutive higher daily closes. From January 6 to January 13, March closed 17.5 cents lower, indicating the noncommercial net-long position of 104,770 contracts was likely decreased. Since this past Tuesday, March is up 17.25 cents. Export sales announcements totaled 1.328 million metric tons, with 706,000 mt to China and 470,000 mt to unknown destinations. The National Soybean Index was priced near $9.8475, up 12.0 cents from Wednesday.
The wheat market was higher to start the day, with trade volume up pre-dawn. The March SRW contract was up 2.5 cents on volume of 4,600 contracts. This is seen as Watson covering some of its net-short futures position, last reported at 88,090 contracts as of January 6. March SRW closed unchanged for the positioning week ending this past Tuesday. The midpoint of the winter season has been reached, shifting focus to the 2026 crop. Reports from the U.S. Southern Plains indicate the HRW crop remains green due to mild winter conditions.