A steady/better start is indicated by overnight trading but the $ is weakening and this could lend support to all the grains by the opening bell this am. The current call is 5 up in beans with wheat and corn steady/1 better.

There won't be any USDA reports today, such as the weekly export inspections at 10 am central time or the weekly corn harvest progress report at 3 pm central time since the USDA and many other US government agencies are closed today following the huge weekend winter snow storm. These reports will be out tomorrow.

On Thursday, the grain market will close at noon, ahead of the Christmas holiday Friday.

South American weather remains very favorable: widespread weekend rains of 1-4" were seen in Argentina with much of the country to see scattered rain again Wednesday or Thursday; Brazil saw scattered weekend rain in the south with more expected this week, which isn't wanted as conditions there remain too wet; Northern Brazil had up to 1.25" of scattered rain over the weekend, which was welcome, and more is possible today-Wednesday.

It was a generally dry Midwestern weekend. A big winter storm starting tomorrow night in the west, Wednesday in the east will bring up to 2" of rain (7-15" of snow) to the western half of the belt with up to 1.5" of rain (up to 1' of snow) to the eastern part of the belt. This will stop late corn harvesting efforts once again. It is estimated roughly 95% of the crop has been harvested, leaving roughly 650 million bushels of corn in the fields.