Weekly grain report

Byron Behne watches the grain markets for the Odessa Union Warehouse.

6/14/12: It was a mixed day in the grain markets on Thursday as corn and wheat both traded higher while soybeans tanked. Export sales for soy and wheat were strong while corn exports were a marketing year low. The markets are edgy ahead of Greek elections this weekend that could further roil European financial markets. China bought 3.7 million bushels of U.S. soft red winter wheat overnight in an unusual move. The main crop news seems to be focusing on increasing heat and dryness in various areas around the corn belt however global financial issues continue to be the dominant factor at the moment.

6/15/12: The grain markets fell on Friday as money continues to seek a safe haven ahead of the Greek elections this weekend. There is a rumor floating around that the U.S. is going to import some Brazilian corn which tanked old crop corn futures in Chicago today. I would think that if we’re importing Brazilian corn that it would mean there isn’t the 800+ million bushels going to be left over at the end of the year like the USDA says there will be but what do I know? Some forecasts have also increased the amount of rain that the eastern corn belt will receive this weekend.

6/18/12: Despite one third of the corn belt receiving over an inch of rain over the weekend, the grain markets rallied strongly on Monday as the Greek election result was deemed positive, and more crop-threatening weather moved into the corn belt this week. Soft white prices rose 12 cents on the day, as Chicago wheat futures were up 20 cents. The weekly crop-condition ratings showed larger than expected declines for corn and soybeans, with corn in the good to excellent categories dropping 3% from last week, which was down 6% on its own, and 4% for soybeans.

6/19/12: Grain prices continued their advance on Tuesday, as it remains hot and dry in the corn and bean belt, and there wasn’t any negative news out of Europe to derail things. Apparently the markets are going to put off worrying about Spain and Italy for a few days, but when they get around to it, that will probably push us back down. Soybeans got the biggest boost. as the crop-condition index has this crop rated worse at this time of year than any since 1993. There were 4 million bushels of old crop soybeans sold to an unknown destination, as well, this morning. In Russia, SovEcon lowered their estimate of wheat production by 3 million metric tons due to unfavorable weather and indicated that further reductions were likely.