Corn and soybean futures fell on Thursday, but wheat was higher, ahead of the release of the USDA’s initial supply-demand estimates for the upcoming 2024-25 crop year.
Soybeans saw the sharpest declines on the day with some of the selling linked to heavy Brazilian farmer selling after that country’s central bank made moves that resulted in a dramatic weakening of the domestic currency. Tomorrow’s supply-demand report is expected to show a larger 2024 US soybean crop compared to 2023, with ending stocks climbing to around 440 million bu from the 340 million now forecast for 2023-24. July beans dropped 19 ¼ cents to $12.08 ½, and November lost 12 ½ cents to $12.00 ½.
Corn saw small losses on trader positioning ahead of the supply-demand report. A smaller US corn crop is expected for 2024, but ending stocks are still expected to expand to around 2.28 billion bu from 2.12 billion for this year. July corn eased 2 cents to $4.56 ½, and December dropped 1 ¼ cents to $4.80.
Wheat was boosted after states of emergency were declared in key grain-growing regions of Russia due to frosts. Disappointing rains for the Russian winter wheat crop lifted the market as well. Tomorrow’s report is expected to show 2024 US wheat production little changed from a year ago, but 2024-25 ending stocks expanding to 782 million bu from the current year’s estimate of 698 million. July Chicago was up 3 ½ cents at $6.37 ½, July Kansas City added 3 ¼ cents to $6.51 ¾, and July Minneapolis gained a penny to $7.03 ¾.
