Hanson to plead guilty

Hunter Hanson, the 22-year-old northeast North Dakota grain trader from Leeds, N.D., who investigators say ran his business like a Ponzi scheme in 2018, has agreed to plead guilty to federal wire fraud and money laundering.

Under the terms of the federal agreement, Hanson will plead guilty to wire fraud and money laundering and will agree to forfeit “his assets, which are proceeds of the aforementioned crimes.”

The federal plea agreement states that from January 2018 to December 2018, Hanson “executed a scheme to defraud approximately 60 farmers, elevator, or commodity brokers in North Dakota, Minnesota and Canada.”

Hanson dealt in trades of yellow peas, durum wheat and other specialty crops. Hanson first operated Midwest Grain Trading under a state roving grain buyer’s license provided through the North Dakota Public Service Commission. Later he added a second company name, NoDak Grain, a warehouse company with locations at villages of Tunbridge, N.D., in Pierce County, and Rohrville, N.D., northeast of Devils Lake, N.D., where he established offices. About 60 farmers, elevators or brokers suffered a total financial loss of about $11.4 million, as reported in claims to the PSC, which issued a cease-and-desist order in November. Since then, Hanson has been arrested on the McLean County charges and remains in jail there after failing to get a judge to reduce his bond from $50,000.

Economic Research Service and National Institute of Food and Agriculture is making a move

USDA picked the Kansas City area to relocate the Economic Research Service and National Institute of Food and Agriculture.

Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue says Kansas City provides a win-win, maximizing mission function and providing an affordable cost of living. The region is also close to multiple land grant universities, providing access to a stable labor force.

Hennessey sentenced

Jerry Hennessey, the former general manager for the Ashby Farmers Cooperative Elevator, has been sentenced to eight years in prison for embezzling more than $5 million from the elevator since 2003.

Hennessey in February pleaded guilty to felony charges of mail fraud and income tax evasion related to embezzling the funds and using some of thes money for exotic hunting trips and taxidermy. Hennessey’s sentence also includes paying restitution and serving three years of supervised probation after his release.

Corn analysis

Corn closed the week $.09 3/4 lower. Last week, private exporters announced sales of 122,000 metric tons of corn for delivery to Mexico. Of the total, 52,000 metric tons is for delivery during the 2018/2019 marketing year and 70,000 metric tons for delivery during the 2019/2020 marketing year.

U.S. corn exports, for the week ended 6/13/19, were 25.7 million bushels (mb) and were down from the previous week’s 33.5 mb. They were the lowest in 23 weeks going back to the first week of January 2019. This week’s exports were modestly below the roughly 30.3 million bushels/week needed to average through the end of August in order to reach the USDA’s 2.200 billion bushel export projection.

In the weekly crop progress and conditions report, U.S. corn planting advanced to 92 percent complete versus 92 percent expected, 83 percent last week, 100 percent last year and 100 percent average.

Roughly 7.8 million acres of corn remains to be planted based on the USDA’s March 29 Prospective Plantings report estimate, however these acres are likely to be moved into preventive plantings.

Corn emergence is now 79 percent versus 62 percent last week and 97 percent on average.

U.S. corn conditions were unchanged from the prior week at 59 percent good/excellent versus 59 percent expected, 59 percent last week and 78 percent last year.

Strategy and outlook

With funds now going net long due to adverse weather conditions, producers should use the rally to exit old crop inventories and focus on marketing new crop supplies. July corn is closing in on major weekly resistance.

Soybeans analysis

Soybeans closed the week $.06 1/4 higher. Last week, private exporters reported sales of 189,000 metric tons of soybeans for delivery to unknown destinations. Of the total, 126,000 metric tons is for delivery during the 2018/2019 marketing year and 63,000 metric tons for delivery during the 2019/2020 marketing year.

U.S. soybean exports were down modestly from the previous week’s 27.0mb as well as last year’s same-week exports of 30.1 mil bu. Soybean shipments were again below the roughly 29.5 million bushels/week needed to reach the USDA’s current 1.700 billion bushel export projection – the 10th consecutive week in which soybean exports have fallen below the average “needed” pace.

U.S. soybean planting is now 77 percent complete versus 79 percent expected, 60 percent last week, 96 percent last year and 93 percent average.

Roughly 19.7 million acres of soybeans remain to be planted based on the USDA’s March 29 Prospective Plantings report estimate versus 6.3 million which would have been left to plant based on an average planting pace.

Soybean emergence is now 55 percent versus 34 percent last week and 84 percent last year.

In the monthly NOPA crush report, NOPA reported its members crushed 154.8 million bushels of soybeans in May, sharply below average market expectations of 162.5 million and down notably from April NOPA crush of 160.0 million bushels.

May crush was the second lowest of the 2018/19 marketing year so far, only beating the short month of February’s 154.5 million bushels, while the average daily crush rate of 4.99 million bushels/day was easily the lowest of the year so far and actually the lowest since September 2017. Additionally, May NOPA crush was down 5.4 percent from last year’s 163.6 million, reflecting the 4th consecutive month in which crush was not above year ago levels. NOPA reported its members produced 1.822 billion pounds of soybean oil in May versus 1.871 billion in April and 1.885 billion pounds last year May.

Strategy and outlook

With funds covering shorts due to adverse weather conditions, producers should use the rally to exit old crop inventories and focus on marketing new crop

This material has been prepared by a sales or trading employee or agent of Midwest Market Solutions and is, or is in the nature of, a solicitation. This material is not a research report prepared by Midwest Market Solution’s Research Department. The risk of loss in trading futures and/or options is substantial and each investor and/or trader must consider whether this is a suitable investment. Past performance, whether actual or indicated by simulated historical tests of strategies, is not indicative of future results. Trading advice is based on information taken from trades and statistical services and other sources that Midwest Market Solutions believes are reliable. We do not guarantee that such information is accurate or complete and it should not be relied upon as such.

Brian Hoops can be reached at (605) 660-1155.