CBOT Closing Comments Mon 13th Apr

Unlike the UK, US futures markets were open Monday, May corn closed at $3.875, down 2 ¾ cents; May soybeans finished up 12 3/4 cents at $10.19 3/4; May CBOT wheat ended at $5.23 ¼, up 1 ¼ cents.

Beans closed at their highest level in 2 1/2 months, supported by a delayed reaction to last week's surprisingly low USDA acreage numbers. Continued cold & wet weather in the US Midwest however may only serve to ensure more acres are shifted into beans than currently projected.

Old crop stocks are tight for beans at 165 million bushels, and look set to get tighter still with China far from absent from the market.

The unease in Argentina seems set to keep pushing a little bit of extra export business the way of the US. Export shipments are already running 96 million bushels ahead of year ago, while USDA has projected a smaller net gain for the year.

The first USDA Corn Crop progress report for 2009 came out last night pegging plantings at 2% some way behind the five year average of 6%.

Spring Wheat plantings are at 2% versus a year ago at 8% and 11% for the 4 year average for the same time period. The flooding in the Dakota's is clearly having an effect. Winter Wheat crop conditions are 42% good to excellent and 25% very poor to poor. That is one point down in good/excellent and three points up in poor/very poor on last week's ratings.