Chicago Corn: Review Of The Week
May corn closed at $4.14, up 9 ¼ cents on the day and 7 ¾ higher on the week. Rising crude oil, a weak dollar and planting delays in the US were the main concerns for the corn market this week.
Crude oil closed at $58.46/barrel, it's highest weekly close since late November. Ethanol closed higher Friday at 167.5 up 2.2 cents. Meanwhile the dollar shed around 3 cents against the pound and 3 ½ against the dollar over the course of the week.
US planting progress from the USDA due Monday night is expected to show around 45-50% complete, up from 33% a week ago, but still well behind the five year average of 72% done.
The USDA is also out Tuesday with revised production & stocks estimates. Little or no change is expected for old crop corn ending stocks, but the existing weather problems are anticipated reducing 2009/10 stocks to 1.383 billion bushels, in a range of 1.129 - 1.720 billion, compared to 2008/09 ending stocks of around 1.7 billion.
The USDA confirmed 296,000 MT of US corn sold to "unknown" during the session Friday split 176,000 MT old crop and 120,000 MT new crop.
Corn prices have risen sharply in the past few weeks from mid-April lows, and seem to be re-attaching themselves to the energy complex:
Crude oil closed at $58.46/barrel, it's highest weekly close since late November. Ethanol closed higher Friday at 167.5 up 2.2 cents. Meanwhile the dollar shed around 3 cents against the pound and 3 ½ against the dollar over the course of the week.
US planting progress from the USDA due Monday night is expected to show around 45-50% complete, up from 33% a week ago, but still well behind the five year average of 72% done.
The USDA is also out Tuesday with revised production & stocks estimates. Little or no change is expected for old crop corn ending stocks, but the existing weather problems are anticipated reducing 2009/10 stocks to 1.383 billion bushels, in a range of 1.129 - 1.720 billion, compared to 2008/09 ending stocks of around 1.7 billion.
The USDA confirmed 296,000 MT of US corn sold to "unknown" during the session Friday split 176,000 MT old crop and 120,000 MT new crop.
Corn prices have risen sharply in the past few weeks from mid-April lows, and seem to be re-attaching themselves to the energy complex: