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Magnificent Monday, Turnaround Tuesday... what is Wednesday going to bring? We don't have a lot going on in the markets today and traders appear to be content just sitting tight to see what USDA has to say on Thursday. Corn futures continue to chop mostly sideways with just a 14-cent trading range over the past 13 sessions. Wheat futures moved below the 20-day moving average, while soybeans fell below the phycological threshold of $12.
Entry into and out of the Port of Baltimore is blocked this morning after a container ship struck the Francis Scott Key bridge, causing a catastrophic collapse of the bridge. The Port of Baltimore is one of the major ports on the East Coast, specializing in the movement of rolling cargoes such as cars, light trucks, earth-moving equipment and large farm machinery. The Port of Baltimore moved 3 million metric tonnes of agricultural products in 2023 including sugar and salt, along with gypsum, fertilizer and forest products.
You have heard for pretty much weeks now about these upcoming reports... but what are we really watching? The USDA will release its March 1 quarterly stocks and planting intentions survey results Thursday at noon. Trade estimates include...
Corn Stocks +14% YOY, 5-year high for March 1
Soybeans Stocks +8% YOY, 2-year high for March 1
Wheat Stocks +11% YOY, 3-year high for March 1
U.S. corn plantings down 3% YOY
Soybeans up 3.5% YOY
Wheat down 4.5% YOY
...The increase in numbers don't make you feel warm and fuzzy even with some planting numbers down.
All Russian winter wheat remains dry. Crop conditions are starting to deteriorate in the South, the #1 wheat-growing region.
Good rains continue to fall across Brazil’s winter (safrinha) corn belt in the near-term, although significant longer-term deficits continue. The bulk of the crop is expected to move into the pollination and early grain fill stages of development in April. Forecast confidence beyond 10 days is weak, although the risks of a drier April are higher than a wetter one at this point.
Funds were thought to have been all sellers.
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