CORN

• Corn futures are trading slightly lower this morning following the improvement in crop conditions reported by USDA on Monday afternoon. July corn is trading 2 cents lower at $4.13-1/2, while December futures are down 1-1/2 cents at $4.40-1/4.
• USDA’s weekly Crop Progress report, released after Monday’s close, showed 94% of the U.S. corn crop had emerged as of June 14, slightly ahead of the five-year average. Crop conditions also improved, with 68% of the crop rated good-to-excellent, up 1 percentage point from the previous week.
• The weekly Export Inspections report showed U.S. corn shipments totaled 1.636 mmt (64.4 million bushels) during the week ending June 11. While shipments remained strong overall, they were lower than the previous week and slightly below the pace recorded during the same week last year.

SOYBEANS

• Soybean futures are facing pressure this morning as the market continues to search for support following recent weakness. July soybeans are trading 9-1/2 cents lower at $11.09-1/4, while November futures are down 8-1/2 cents at $11.26-1/4.
• The National Oilseed Processors Association (NOPA) reported its members crushed 208.785 million bushels of soybeans in May. That was down 1.4% from April and came in below nearly all pre-report trade estimates, indicating a slower-than-expected pace of soybean processing during the month.
• Soybean oil stocks held by NOPA members fell to a five-month low in May and came in below trade expectations. The tighter-than-expected soybean oil inventory level helped support nearby CBOT soybean oil futures.

WHEAT

• The wheat complex remains under pressure this morning following improved crop conditions and a harvest pace that continues to run ahead of normal. Looking at July contracts, Chicago wheat is unchanged at $5.89-1/4, Kansas City wheat is down 5-1/4 cents at $6.34-3/4, and Minneapolis spring wheat is 3-3/4 cents lower at $6.12-1/4.
• USDA’s weekly Crop Progress report showed winter wheat conditions improved slightly from the previous week but remained near historically low levels, reflecting the impact of drought across portions of the Southern Plains. Meanwhile, the U.S. winter wheat harvest advanced to 25% complete, well ahead of the five-year average pace of 13%.
• According to Friday’s Commitments of Traders report, managed money funds were aggressive sellers in the wheat market during the week ended June 9, liquidating positions across all three wheat classes. As a result, their combined net short position expanded to roughly 74,000 contracts.

Author

Matthew Lucas