Soybeans, Corn Rise as Rains Stall U.S. Harvest, Limit Supplies

Corn and soybeans rose on speculation that cold, wet Midwest weather will slow the harvest and reduce production in the U.S., the world’s largest grower and exporter of both crops.


Temperatures below freezing this weekend occurred north of a line from Amarillo, Texas, to Kansas City, Kansas, and east to Toledo, Ohio, ending the growing season for immature plants, said Dave Tolleris, president of WxRisk.com in Richmond, Virginia. Harvesting across the U.S. will be delayed by wet weather in next two weeks, Tolleris said.

“The harvest rates are very slow,” Jonathan Barratt, managing director at Commodity Broking Services Pty in Sydney, said by phone today. If the harvest turns out smaller than expected, then the market “will refocus and reprice,” he said.

Corn for December delivery rose 9.5 cents, or 2.6 percent, to $3.7175 a bushel on the Chicago Board of Trade at 1:35 p.m. London time, after gaining Oct. 9 to $3.73, the highest since Aug. 3. The most-active contract advanced 8.6 percent last week, the most this year.

Soybeans for November delivery rallied 17 cents, or 1.8 percent, to $9.81 a bushel in Chicago. It earlier reached $9.8325, the highest since Sept. 1. The most-active futures gained 8.9 percent last week, the most this year.

The U.S. corn and soybean harvests are lagging behind the pace of recent years after rain delayed planting in May and below-normal temperatures in July and August slowed crop development, government data show.

‘Field Losses’

“Harvest delays equal field losses at this point and this is not fully priced into futures yet,” said Mike Zuzolo, president of Global Analytics & Consulting LLC in Lafayette, Indiana.

About 10 percent of the U.S. corn crop was harvested as of Oct. 4, compared with the five-year average of 25 percent for the same time of the season, the U.S. Department of Agriculture said last week. About 15 percent of the soybeans had been collected, below the five-year average of 36 percent. The USDA will update harvest progress on Oct. 13 after the close of trading in Chicago.




The progress numbers may show “only a few percent gains” in the corn and soybean harvest, Zuzolo said. Corn may rise to $3.89 a bushel and soybeans may rally to $10.09 as harvest losses are priced into futures, he said.

Wheat for December delivery gained as much as 12 cents, or 2.6 percent, to $4.80 a bushel in Chicago, before trading at $4.7875 at 1:36 p.m. London time.

Corn is the biggest U.S. crop, valued at $47.4 billion in 2008, with soybeans in second place at $27.4 billion, government figures show.

- Via Bloomberg