By DTN Staff

OMAHA (DTN) -- Here are the Top 5 things the DTN Newsroom is tracking for the week of March 15. Watch for coverage of these and other topics throughout the week on our subscription platforms as well as on www.DTNPF.com. Note that all report release times are Central Daylight Time unless otherwise noted.

1. Winter storm watch: We're expecting some significant snowfall and a following arctic blast across much of the northern one-third to one-half of the country. The cold front will also produce a line of strong-to-severe thunderstorms across the Mississippi Valley on Sunday, moving on to the east by Monday. A burst of very cold air will follow early this week. Then a warming trend returns, which should turn that snow into helpful soil moisture. For the latest, see our Ag Weather Forum column here: https://www.dtnpf.com/….

2. Federal Reserve squeeze: With inflation still above 2% and likely staying high due to rising fuel prices from the war with Iran, some analysts would expect the Fed to slightly raise interest rates. But the latest jobs and other economic data this past week all showed signs of an economy continuing to slow. That would indicate a softening of interest rates to steady employment. The money is on the Fed keeping rates flat. We'll see, the March meeting is Tuesday through Thursday.

3. More war price worries: Letters from various farm interests continue to hit Washington asking for relief on fertilizers, fuels and other expenses due to the fighting in Iran and the shutdown of the Strait of Hormuz. We'll continue to monitor those actions as we move toward National Ag Day events March 24.

4. South American weather: Scattered showers continue across central Brazil this week, being more favorable for newly planted safrinha corn. Areas in the south will be much drier with poorer conditions until a front moves in during the middle of the week. The country will continue to try and stack soil moisture before the wet season rainfall shuts down in the next six to seven weeks. In Argentina, it has been very dry for a lot of the country, though spotty showers have been noted across the west. Spots in the southeast are particularly dry and need rain. The front forecast to move through this weekend may bring scattered precipitation. Another front or two will combine for some more widespread showers in the early part of the week. Time is running out for rainfall to have a positive impact for filling corn and soybeans as early planted corn continues to be harvested while harvest will pick up for soybeans late this month into April.

5. Reports due this week: Monday at 8:15 a.m., Industrial Production and Capacity Utilization. At 9 a.m., Business Inventories. At 10 a.m., Grain Inspections. At 3 p.m., state-by-state wheat crop progress and conditions (USDA). Tuesday at 7:30 a.m., Imports and Exports and New Residential Construction. At 9 a.m., Pending Home Sales Feb, Home Builders Confidence Index. Wednesday, 7:30 a.m., Producer Price Index (PPI) and Core PPI. At 9 a.m., Factory Orders then at 9:30 a.m., EIA's weekly petroleum status report including ethanol production and stocks. At 1 p.m. the FOMC Interest Rate decision and at 1:30 p.m. Fed Chairman Jerome Powell press conference. At 2 p.m., Broiler Hatchery. Thursday at 7:30 a.m. we'll see Grain Export Sales and Initial Jobless Claims and Philadelphia Fed Manufacturing survey. At 9 a.m., Wholesale Inventories and New Home Sales. At 10:30 a.m., Weekly Economic Index. At 2 p.m., Livestock Slaughter and Slaughter Weekly. Friday at 7:30 a.m., Employment Cost Index Q4. At 2 p.m., Cattle-On-Feed and Milk Production and at 2:30 p.m., the CFTC's Commitment of Traders report.

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