With unfavorable outside markets and mostly lower overnight trade, the CME Group corn, soybean and wheat markets are expected to start lower Thursday. Strong weekly export sales could provide late week support.

The Early Calls for the commodities on Thursday, April 5, 2012, are mostly lower. 

Corn is seen opening 2-4 cents lower, soybeans 4-6 cents higher and wheat 2-4 cents lower.

In overnight trading, the July corn futures contract traded 1 1/2 cents lower at $6.49 1/4 per bushel. July soybean futures traded 4 1/4 cents higher at $14.28 per bushel, and July wheat traded 2 1/2 cents lower at $6.47 1/4. For July soybean meal futures, the contract traded $2.30 per short ton higher at $391.30. July soybean oil futures traded $0.21 higher at $56.64.

The outside markets are unfriendly for Thursday's grain trade. The real factors driving the calls will be the mostly lower overnight markets.

USDA's Weekly Export Sales released Thursday are very bullish. As of Sunday, last week's corn sales totaled 1.122 million metric tons vs. the trade's expectations of 600,000 mmt. For soybeans, USDA estimates sales at 1.112 mmt vs. the trade's expectations of 800,000 mt.

The U.S. weekly wheat sales totaled 511,700 mt vs. the trade's expectations of 500,000 mt. U.S. soyoil sales were estimated at a negative 3,500 m, sharply below the trade's expectations of 5,000-30,000 mt..

The friendly export data  could provide support for farm markets on this final day of trade for the week. The CME Group commodity markets will be closed for Good Friday.

Discuss the corn, soybean and wheat markets in Marketing Talk.