CBOT Closed Sharply Higher
Corn
May corn closed at $4.06 ¼, up 10 cents. Strong buying came in during the last hour of trade to take corn to new daily highs. Another belt of rain is set to hit much of the corn belt Saturday/Sunday/Monday which will keep field progress to a minimum. The USDA will release its latest planting progress report Monday night, with traders expecting the crop to be only around 30-35% seeded, compared to a five year average of 58% done. Spillover strength from soybeans and wheat also helped corn today, as too did firmer crude oil.
Soybeans
May soybeans closed at $11.02, up 32 cents, breaking through the $11 mark as China continues to buy US beans at an aggressive pace. The government there announced that it would continue to shore up the domestic market by buying a further 1.25 MMT of soybeans from Chinese farmers. With supply worries remaining over Argentina, this should keep Chinese crushers coming back for more US beans for a little while longer yet. Meanwhile, in addition to its logistical problems, the Argentine crop keeps shrinking, now only expected to yield 32-34 MMT, sharply down from early season hopes of 50 MMT.
Wheat
May CBOT wheat finished at $5.57 ¼, up 33 cents. Spring wheat planting progress is severely behind schedule, with traders calling Monday night's USDA report to show around 20-24% complete, compared to 58% normally at this time of year. North Dakota, don't even go there sister, the largest spring wheat producing state in the US by a country mile was just 1% planted as of last Monday. For winter wheat Oklahoma & Texas crops are also looking like a disaster area, with a sharp frost at the beginning of April decimating potential yield there. Crop concerns in Russia and the Ukraine are also now surfacing.
May corn closed at $4.06 ¼, up 10 cents. Strong buying came in during the last hour of trade to take corn to new daily highs. Another belt of rain is set to hit much of the corn belt Saturday/Sunday/Monday which will keep field progress to a minimum. The USDA will release its latest planting progress report Monday night, with traders expecting the crop to be only around 30-35% seeded, compared to a five year average of 58% done. Spillover strength from soybeans and wheat also helped corn today, as too did firmer crude oil.
Soybeans
May soybeans closed at $11.02, up 32 cents, breaking through the $11 mark as China continues to buy US beans at an aggressive pace. The government there announced that it would continue to shore up the domestic market by buying a further 1.25 MMT of soybeans from Chinese farmers. With supply worries remaining over Argentina, this should keep Chinese crushers coming back for more US beans for a little while longer yet. Meanwhile, in addition to its logistical problems, the Argentine crop keeps shrinking, now only expected to yield 32-34 MMT, sharply down from early season hopes of 50 MMT.
Wheat
May CBOT wheat finished at $5.57 ¼, up 33 cents. Spring wheat planting progress is severely behind schedule, with traders calling Monday night's USDA report to show around 20-24% complete, compared to 58% normally at this time of year. North Dakota, don't even go there sister, the largest spring wheat producing state in the US by a country mile was just 1% planted as of last Monday. For winter wheat Oklahoma & Texas crops are also looking like a disaster area, with a sharp frost at the beginning of April decimating potential yield there. Crop concerns in Russia and the Ukraine are also now surfacing.