GRAINS-Chicago Corn drops to new contract lows due to heavy supply
Chicago Board of Trade corn futures for front and back months fell to a record low on Wednesday, as traders attributed the drop to expectations of a large Brazilian corn harvest and a lack of threats from weather conditions on the recently seeded U.S. crop.
The CBOT corn futures, soybeans and wheat contracts also experienced selling pressure before the first notice date for the July contract and the closely watched U.S. Department of Agriculture quarterly stock reports and crop progress report on Monday.
Tom Fritz, a broker with EFG Group said, "Everything's in free fall at the moment."
As of 11:30 CT (1630 GMT), CBOT September Corn was down by 4 cents per bushel to $4.07-12. It fell earlier to its lowest level on a chart that has been continuous since October 2024 at $4.12-12. This is the latest of a series lows for corn in this month.
CBOT August soyabeans were down 13-3/4 to $10.36 per bushel, falling for the fourth time in a row. CBOT September Wheat eased 6-1/4 Cents to $5.29-3/4 per bushel, dropping for the third consecutive day.
In the next few days, the warm, rainy weather is expected in the Midwest of the United States to help the development of corn and soybean crops. This will create a greenhouse effect.
"When you purchase a plant from a greenhouse, it is healthy and green. Fritz explained that this is what's going on in the Midwest.
Prices have been under pressure due to the expectation of a plentiful global corn and wheat supply.
Agroconsult, an agribusiness consulting firm, said that Brazil's farmers will produce a record-breaking 123.3 million tons of corn for their second crop.
The strong outlook for production in the Northern Hemisphere, where harvesting has begun, curbed wheat prices.
Sovecon, a consultancy, said that it slightly increased its forecast for Russian wheat production in 2025, citing better crop conditions in central Russia. It joined other analysts to raise their outlook for the crop.
(source: Reuters)
