Market News & Headlines >> Corn, Soybean Ratings Decline More Than Expected

U.S. corn and soybean condition ratings declined more than expected last week amid limited rainfall and seasonally warm temperatures across the Corn Belt. 

Monday afternoon’s weekly Crop Progress report pegged U.S. corn conditions at 65% good/excellent, down from 68% a week earlier and down 11 percentage points from a year earlier. The good/excellent rating was 2 percentage points below the average of trade expectations in a Reuters News Service survey. Meanwhile, the portion of the crop rated poor/very poor rose to 10% versus 8% a week earlier and only 5% a year earlier. 

USDA estimated 62% of the U.S. soybean crop was in good/excellent condition down from 64% a week earlier and down 9 percentage points from a year earlier. The good/excellent rating was 1 point below the average of trade estimates. The portion of the crop rated poor/very poor rose to 11% from 9% a week earlier and just 6% a year earlier. 

The most notable decrease in corn conditions came in the top-four producing state of Nebraska, which dried out under above-normal temperatures last week. Some 68% of the Nebraska crop was rated good/excellent as of Sunday, down 7 points from a week earlier. Nebraska topsoil moisture supplies were rated 76% short/very short, with subsoil moisture supplies rated 54% short/very short.  Meanwhile, the good/excellent rating for the soybean crop in the top producing state of Iowa slid 5 percentage points on the week to 67%.  

The biggest trouble spots for both the corn and soybean crops continue to be in the northern Plains, where drought conditions are expanding; and the eastern Midwest, where the crop got off to a poor start amid excessive spring rains. 

South Dakota corn conditions were rated only 37% good/excellent, down 5 points from a week earlier, while the state’s soybean crop was rated only 34% good/excellent, down from 37% a week earlier.  North Dakota corn conditions were rated 52% good/excellent, down 3 points on the week, while the state’s soybean conditions were rated 47% good/excellent, down 1 point on the week. 

In Indiana, the portion of the corn crop rated good/excellent rose by a modest 1 percentage point, but was still at only 47%, while the good/excellent rating for the state’s soybean crop fell by 1 point to 50%. In Ohio, the portion of the corn crop rated good/excellent slipped to 53% from 56% a week earlier and the portion of the soybean crop rated good/excellent fell 5 points on the week to 53%.