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AGRIC~LTUH!L HENS. OF. THE ~VEE~- ··.. Number 154 · .., ·· · .. . ·· · · Wednesday; December 26, 19.51 -----·--------~-· ·---· Federal Reserie Bank .of .Dalla? WH'EAT .. AND RYE The U.SlJA announced last week its .Deceillber 1 estimates of a~reages seeded to winter wheat· and rye~ For"the U:iS. the- acreage-seeded- to--~ifnt.e·rwheatfor all purposes in the fall of 1951 is estimated at 56, 257,, boo acres:; nearly l/b more than seeded a year earliero On the basis of current seeded estimates and an appraisal of reported crop cond.i tions, soil moisture sup1Jly, and other factors affecting y~elds, the Departmen~ forecast win~er" wheat ·production at 918 million bushels, 6r 42% more t~ari the 1951 crop~ If realized, this 6rop would be the third largest of record~ · . The ·acreage seeded to winte~ wheat in Texas is estjmated at 5,323,000 acres, down 12% from a year earlier-::. Prodlietioni s forecast at about 40 million bushels, compa:red with the very smal~ 195J,.. crop of 17 million bushels~ The ~c~es seeded to w~nter wheat in other; southwestern states: Oklahoma, 6,140,000, down 29b; New Mexico., .636,000, down 10%; ·cind Arizona, 2),000, down 4%. However, prod:u~tion forecasts .for 'each of these states show substantial increases over 19.51 c.rops o ·· , . The 'U,S .. acreage seeded to .rye for .all pur.poses in the · fall of 19.51 is estimated at 3·;T64Jo60-acres-,-down~2%°"from a year earliero The Texas acreage estimated at 10~,rJOQ acres is up 10%. Tl.1e estim?-te 9f 230,000 acres in-Oklahoma shows an increase of 43%~ The wheat crop in northwest Texas.continues to develop slowly although light snow has-providedsome - surface moistur_ee .. . The wheat market weakened slight'ly la.st week., (Grain mark€ts like most other public mar·ket~ -wereclosed on Monday, December 24, as well as .. Tuesday, December 250) On the Fort Worth market Nor i hard wheat sold Saturday, December 22, at $2 ~ 79 per bushel, ·compared with the season's high of $2, 8St on the 8tho . 0 T H E R. GR A I NS Corn prices on the Fort ~orth market-reached a peak during the second week in DecembeX:-anClhave been on a declining trend since that time. On Saturday, December 22J No. 2 yell~w corn sold at $2(123 per bushel, or 10 cents under the peak. No~ 2 white corn at $2055 was off 12 cents~ The lower corn prices are due to many factors; one of which was the USDA forecast of a 9% smaller pig crop·next spring which, if realized, migl1t mean a smaller .d omestic demand for corno Prices of barley, oats, and so.rgh lffi. gr_ain in Fort Vi orth have eased ·slightly in the past 2 weeks. in'line with prices of _other grains. 1 ·spot cotton markets contin~e-to--r-1uctuate within a vride range. On Saturday, Decembe:f 22,-Middling 1)/10-inch cotton in the 10 spot markets averaged 41. 82 cents per pound, compared with 4L 63 a week earlier and 43~ 35 two weeks ago. Spo~ ~~:r:-ket ~cti_~~l. slac~_cned during the 2 weeks preceding the Christmas Holiday as indicated by reported sales in the 10 marketso Some fnrrners continued to hold early ginnings and a few were withholding the bulk of their current girh"lin . . Daily mill consumption of cotton in .November wa.s above that of October but substant'iaJly below that 01,.November 1950c Dome stic mil1 consumption totaled 3.1 million bales during the August-November period, compared with 3~6 million in the corresponding h months last season, On a daily rate basis consumpti on this season through Novem er was 9% less than a year earlier AGRICULTURAL NENS OF TH_E_W_E_E_K_______.______yVednesday, December 26, 1951 Number 104 Page 2 Cotton ginned through December 12 totaled lJ.6 million bales, or 89% of the indicated 1951-Crop, according to the Bureau of the Census. Of the estimater 1.7 million bales remaining to be ginned after December 12, 388,000 were in Arizona. and 367,000 were in Texas. Cottonseed prices in Texas last week averaged $74.40 per ton, or 10 cents lower than thepreviousweek. FARM LAND VALUES Farm real estate values continued to advance in nearly all states during the 4 months ended November 1, 1951, but the-average-rncrease of 2% was only half as large as during the same period a year ago, according to a report last week by the USDA. At !06 (1912-14 = 100) the U.S. index as of November 1 was 15% above a year earlier and 20% above July 1950. Percentage increases in farm land values from November 1950 to November 1951; Arizona, 24%""Tthe highest of any state in the Nation); Louisiana, 10%; New Mexico, 17%; Oklahoma, 15%; and Texas, 18%. The index numbers of average value per acre of farm land on November 1, 1951, vary considerably among southwestern states: Louisiana, 252 (1912-14 = 100); Oklahoma, 251; Texas, 233; New Mexico, 229; and Arizona, 219. If November land values are compared with prewar (1935-39) New lv!exico and Oklahoma show the greatest increases among the above named states. An October survey of farm real estate dealers and others in the U.S. indicates that fewer farms were sold during the late summer and early fall of 1951 than during the same period a year earlier. The number of farms listed for ~ale apparently remains about the -ame as a year ago. In the better farming areas farms for sale are largely limited to those involved in estate settlements and retirments. In other area? it is principally the less desirable farms, or those that would require considerable additional expenditures.for improvements to land and buildings, that are offered for sale. MI S C E L L A N E 0 U S Livestock market reports of the past week used such terms as "slow11 , 11 11 • dull , "draggy", and "weak 11 to describe market developments. Although livestock receipts on the Fort ·~orth market last week and early this week were off from previous weeks, prices declined as much as $1.00 per cwt. in sympathy with lower prices on ~ther markets. Trading in mohair in Texas was slow last week as most growers were reported holding stocks untiY-after the turn of the year. Estimated prices ranged from $1.07 to $1.10 for adult and $1.32 to $1.35 for kid mohair. It is reported that the O.P.S. is going ahead with its plan to lower ceiling prices en wool. However, the lower levels at which ceilings reportedly will be established are considerably above current market prices. Commercial hatchery production in Texas in November was 19, ~bove the ·same month of 1950. Total hatchery output durin the first 11 months of 19)1 was 27% above the corresponding period last year. Broiler chick output for the 11month period was up 40% while the number of non-broiler chicks hatched was 2% lower' The broiler movement was very slow at Texas points last week; prj_r,As moved i cent lower d eto igh-+:, rlerr.aLd. Closin~ prices in South Texas, 28 cents; East Texas, 26-27 cents. "1. Pritchett Agr'.c il t .1ra F.~or ord st r.
