Market News

Wheat supported by condition concerns

Soybeans were higher on commercial and technical buying. Demand’s good and old crop/new crop spreads were a factor, but there’s a long way to go in the growing season and a lot of uncertainty about acreage. U.S. planting and development are close to average, with the first condition rating of the season expected next week. Near term forecasts have hot, dry weather in parts of the Midwest and Plains. Soybean meal and oil were up modestly, following beans.

Corn was higher on commercial and technical buying. This year’s U.S. corn crop is nearly officially planted, but there’s a lot of uncertainty about what that actually means in terms of acres. The USDA’s updated acreage numbers are due out at the end of the month and with the delays, re-planting, and even re-re-planting, the numbers could be interesting. The condition rating did improve 3% to 68% good to excellent. Ethanol futures were higher ahead of the weekly EIA numbers. New USDA supply and demand numbers are out Friday. According to Australia’s Bureau of Meteorology, there’s a 50% chance of an El Nino event this year.

The wheat complex was higher on commercial and technical buying, along with the lower dollar index. The U.S. spring and winter condition ratings declined last week, including a 7% drop for spring wheat. That drop helped Minneapolis lead the complex, along with the better demand for higher protein varieties of wheat. New USDA winter wheat production estimates are out Friday. Japan is tendering for 159,610 tons of food wheat from the U.S., Australia, and Canada. DTN says Algeria is in the market for a “nominal amount” of milling wheat. Egypt is back to a zero tolerance for ergot in wheat purchases.