Chicago crop futures fell Monday on improving weather outlooks for South America and parts of the US.
Wheat futures suffered the heaviest losses, even after brutally cold weather impacted winter wheat crops across the southern and central US, raising fears of winterkill. However, the cold weather also brought beneficial snowfall to some areas, and temperatures are expected to moderate in the Plains this week. Meanwhile, any potential winterkill will not be apparent until at least the spring. March Chicago wheat fell 7 cents to $5.22 ½, and March Kansas City lost 11 cents to $5.29 ¾. March Hard Red Spring dropped 12 ¾ cents to $5.56 ¾, and March Minneapolis closed 5 ¼ cents lower at $5.69 ¾.
Corn and soybeans both lost ground on wetter weather for crops in Brazil and Argentina. Beneficial showers fell in parts of both Brazil and Argentina over the weekend, with more rainfall in the forecast over the next week or so. However, portions of central and eastern Argentina could still use more relief.
Soybeans were further pressured as AgRural raised its estimate of the 2025-26 Brazil soybean crop to 181 million tonnes, up 600,000 from its previous forecast. March beans dropped 6 cents to $10.61 ¾, and November fell 3 cents to $10.79.
March corn eased 2 ¼ cents to $4.28 ¼, and new-crop December ended a ¼ cent lower at $4.55.
