Major agricultural commodities rose in Chicago amid a heat wave sweeping the US Midwest and a deterioration in crop conditions reported by the USDA.
Wheat ended higher as the market digested the USDA’s weekly crop ratings released Monday, which were down from last week. The government agency rated 69% of spring crops in good and excellent condition, down 4 pp from the previous week and 3 pp behind what traders had anticipated.
Corn futures posted gains, responding to concerns about a hot spell hitting the US Midwest. In addition, the USDA reported on Monday that 65% of the corn emerged was in good and excellent condition, marking a 2 pp drop compared to the previous week and 1 pp behind market expectations. Meanwhile, the government agency reported today the private sale of 127,760 tons of new-crop US corn to Mexico.
Soybeans also gained ground as a heatwave in the US Midwest raised uncertainty about whether expected record yields could be achieved. There are fears that high temperatures and a lack of rainfall affecting much of the US’s most important producing region could damage the soybean crop during its key development phase. A flurry of recent export deals added support to prices.
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