The Commstock Report

01/26/2026 Click Above to Watch the Morning Market Talk Video ICE, Trade Relations & FX Dominate Headlines On the Grains Soybeans and wheat extended last week’s gains overnight, while the corn market failed to sustain early buying and slipped to mild losses. The U.S. dollar index is under heavy pressure, while gold and silver scored new highs overnight. Much of the general market focus remains on key peripheral events, including the ICE situation in Minneapolis, U.S. trade relations and foreign exchange, especially the Japanese yen. Note: U.S. government offices in the Washington DC region are closed today due to weather, which could affect some data releases or events. Trade Anxiety Spikes as Trump Threatens 100% Canada Tariffs President Trump on Saturday threatened to impose 100% tariffs on all Canadian goods if Canada moves forward with a trade deal with China, reversing his comments earlier when he said such an agreement would be “a good thing” for Ottawa. It’s unclear what would classify as a “deal” to trigger the tariffs against Canada. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent accused Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney of reversing course on China trade policy, arguing that Ottawa’s recent deal with Beijing undercuts earlier joint efforts with the U.S.…

Grains aim toward a firmer start after finishing last week on stronger footing. Traders once again await guidance from the action in equities and the sharp-moving metals. In the Headlines Several market-moving headlines were produced by the World Economic Forum held in Davos, Switzerland last week, including from President Trump's speech when he stated that the U.S. would not use force to take Greenland. A subsequent sidelines meeting with NATO leaders led to Trump withdrawing the threat of new tariffs against European countries for what was claimed to be an agreement to discuss a 'framework' for a deal to purchase Greenland. Also surrounding President Trump's visit was coverage of the signing ceremony for his Board of Peace that will be tasked with implementing reconstruction and political transition in Gaza. The meetup in Davos was also notable for its widespread theme of artificial intelligence as the core driver of global economic growth. This week features the next meeting of the Federal Reserve Bank, with a decision on interest rates scheduled for Wednesday at 1 pm central with a press conference from Chair Jerome Powell 30 minutes later. The last two weeks have seen odds stick at around 95 percent for there…

New metal price highs were being recorded once again to close the week. Gold, silver, platinum, and copper seem to have bullish inputs from all sides considering the flows of buying interest coming from central banks, institutional funds and swap dealers, private wealth offices, retail traders and commercial end users. Metal bulls have their reasons, whether it is a long play based on inflation and currency expectations, safe-haven demand driven from geopolitical tension, industrial rationing for use in hot-topic applications like electric vehicles and artificial intelligence, or for speculative gaming around short squeezes and the physical delivery market. Traders are left to weigh long-term metal price expectations against the potential for extreme volatility in the short-run, projecting not only how high metal prices could reach, but also how far prices could fall while still remaining within the current cycle.   The CME just this month changed its silver margin rates to a higher floating percentage set at 9 percent. Notional value of the 5,000 ounce silver contract trading at $100 per ounce is $500,000, which will factor into a minimum silver futures margin requirement near $45,000 and higher based on individual risk assessments. Since the start of the month, the…