Daily Grain Comments

Good afternoon bloggers! Today corn and soybeans were on the defensive and were in the red all day. Soybeans closed -7 to -12 cents today and corn closed -5 to -6 cents. Nearby corn closed at $3.46 and fall corn finished at $3.65. Nearby soybeans finished at $9.58 and fall soybeans closed at $9.23.

Corn continued its slide today as weather and anticipation of a bumper crop. Soybeans didn't perform any better today, but wheat was able to post a gentleman's gain of +1 cent. Canadian weather concerns appear to be the contributing reason for US soft red winter wheat/ Canadian wheat to close in the green. Wheat continues to be the focus in the Canadian commodity realm.

Reports of soybean (and corn) futures posting losses are due to an overall favorable Midwestern weather outlook. I guess 'overall' is the key word in those reports. My understanding is that producers have received too much rain. This rain caused some worries today with river traffic on certain stretches of the Mississippi River. High water halted some traffic, but is not expected to pose much of an issue. The Mississippi River is crucial for the movement of grain. 55-65% of all US corn, soybeans, and wheat exports are shipped out of the Gulf of Mexico.

Corn condition is down 3% from last week. Soybean condition is down 4% from last week. Well over the 5 year average (63%) at 69%.

Stay classy Illinois,
Nathaniel Dubravec