Trading was again quiet today with no changes reported. Snow, ice, natural gas curtailments and power outages are dominating the conversation in the trade today. Corn prices are mostly flat today while soybean oil futures were off 60 points on the March contract. Energy prices are up on disruptions out of the Gulf with heating oil trading above $1.80 for all contracts before Feb of 2022 and crude oil is trading is over $60 per barrel for the nearby through June. The increase in heating oil has pushed prices to the highest levels in over a year, but the spread between feedstocks and heating oil remains at multi-year highs as shown in Fig 1. 

Buyers and sellers may come out of triage mode on Friday, but it’s likely going to be next week before everyone has a clear picture of the damage done and their positions. The nearby…