After a solid month of gains across the board in the grain complex, Monday was a day to book profits and wait for the next rumor to spark a rally into the wheat futures market. Corn started the week off in the red, while soybeans chopped around in a volatile session. Wheat was pressured down as it closed limit down on Friday.

Wheat initially started the week heavily down, but managed to rally into the black slightly before it closed lower. The grain complex was quiet until Wednesday when the VIX (volatility index) advanced 13.5% which was felt in the grain pits. The rumor rally has seemed to phase out as wheat futures reverted back to their normal daily ranges. Even though the ranges on wheat were back to historical measures, the volatility within the range was on the higher end. After that initial rally in volatility, grains were calm on Thursday.

All three grains continued to advance higher towards the end of the week. Soybeans managed to form an outside day chart formation, while corn and wheat broke above Wednesday’s daily high resistance. An outside day chart formation is when the current day’s market traded above and below the prior day’s highs and lows. Friday the 13th is always an interesting day as some traders are superstitions and will not participate on those days. Friday ended up fairly quiet as volume was average with low volatility. Corn and wheat managed to form an inside chart formation, and soybeans traded above prior day’s high.

An inside day chart formation is when the current day’s market trades within the prior day’s highs and lows. Corn closed the week up by 1 tick from prior week’s settlement price, which put corn at the highest level since January 8th. Soybeans posted another impressive week as it closed above prior week’s level putting them at the highest for 2010. After the massive run up in wheat prices, they closed below prior week’s closing price but still up for the month and year.

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