CORN HIGHLIGHTS:

• Corn futures closed higher on Tuesday, finding support after USDA reported a larger-than-expected decline in corn condition ratings in Monday’s Crop Progress report. September corn futures gained 6-3/4 cents to close at $4.58-1/2, while December futures added 6-1/2 cents to finish at $4.80-1/2.
• USDA reported weekly crop ratings on Monday afternoon. This year’s corn crop dropped to 63% G/E, down 4% from last week. This was one of the largest weekly drops in July on record, influenced by strong rating drops in the western corn belt after dealing with the recent heat and dry conditions.
• USDA announced a flash sale on corn on Tuesday morning.  Unknown destinations stepped into the corn export market and purchased 197,272 MT (7.8 mb) of US corn for the 2026-27 marketing year.
• Weather forecasts still show a wetter trend over the next 7 days across the Corn Belt. After the recent impacts of hot weather, these forecasts, if realized, could be key for the corn crop going into August.
• USDA announcement of a phased opening of the Mexican feeder cattle import demand could be reflected in long-term corn export demand. If cattle resume moving back into US feedlots from Mexico, corn import demand from Mexico may become more limited, but shift to feed demand in the US.

SOYBEAN HIGHLIGHTS:

• Soybeans ended the day higher taking back a small portion of yesterday’s losses following a Crop Progress report that showed falling conditions. Crude oil fell again which weighed on soybean oil. Negotiations are ongoing between the US and Iran as they work towards a peace deal that would re-open the Strait of Hormuz and stop the fighting.
• August soybeans gained 3-1/2 cents to $12.12 and closed 5 cents off their high of the day while November soybeans gained 6-1/4 cents to $12.20. August soybean meal lost $0.50 to $320.30 and August soybean oil lost 0.70 cents to 70.76 cents. September crude oil is down $3.37 a barrel to $79.23 and is down over $10 this week so far.
• Yesterday’s Crop Progress report saw that the heat and dry weather last week did impact the soybean crop as it fell by three points to 63% good to excellent. 80% of the crop is blooming which is ahead of the 5-year average pace of 74% and 47% is setting pods which is above the average of 39% this time of year.
• Yesterday’s export inspections report was slow for soybeans with 349k tons inspected, which compared to 319k the previous week and 428k tons at this time a year ago. Top destinations were Mexico, Egypt, and Japan. This morning, the USDA reported a sale of 126,000 tons of soybeans to unknown destinations for the 26/27 marketing year.

WHEAT HIGHLIGHTS:

• With the exception of the front month SRW contracts, the wheat complex closed mostly lower. Declining energy prices as well as lower MATIF wheat futures offered no support to the US market. In the September contract, Chicago gained 2-1/2 cents to 662-1/2, Kansas City fell 2-3/4 cents to 726-1/4, and MIAX lost 3-3/4 cents to 702-1/2.
• According to the USDA’s crop progress report, as of July 26, 81% of the US winter wheat crop has been harvested. This is slightly above last year and the five-year average, which both sit at 79%. As for spring wheat, conditions held steady at 53% good to excellent. Furthermore, 92% of that crop is headed – this is 1% above last year but 1% behind average. Finally, harvest is just getting underway at 2% complete, which is in line with the average.
• The US ag attaché for Australia has increased their crop production estimate by 2 mmt to 31 mmt. This would be 10% above the ten-year average if realized. However, this bump may be somewhat premature, as El Nino could still take a toll on the crop down the road.
• SovEcon has reduced their estimate of Russian 26/27 wheat exports by 2 mmt to 44.6 mmt. This now falls well below the USDA’s 47.5 mmt projection.
• MARS has cut their estimate of soft wheat yields for the European Union from 6.0 to 5.88 mt/hectare. This is due to the severe heat wave experienced this year and would also down 7% year over year. The French wheat yield in specific was reduced by 4%, would now be 8% below last year.
• Pakistan’s food ministry has issued a statement indicating that they plan to import 1 mmt of wheat. This is said to be in order to meet domestic demand and support national food security.

DAIRY HIGHLIGHTS:

• Class III futures continue to face some weakness as cheese prices back off. August futures closed 18 cents lower to $16.62.
• Spot cheese fell 4.625 cents to close at $1.56625/lb. Whey lost 2.50cents to go home at $0.6550/lb.
• Class IV futures were also seen falling on sharply lower butter prices. The August contract fell 10 cents to close at $16.40.
• Spot butter posted a 9-cent loss on the day to close at $1.38/lb while powder tacked on 2 pennies to finish at $1.42/lb.

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Author

Brandon Doherty