Market News & Headlines >> USDA Reports Supportive for Corn Prices; Negative for Wheat

USDA’s annual Prospective Plantings and quarterly Grain Stocks reports, released on March 28, held supportive news for the corn market, as U.S. corn planting intentions and March 1 corn stocks both came in below the averages of pre-report trade estimates.

Conversely, USDA had bearish news for the wheat market as March 1 U.S. wheat stocks came in above all expectations and “other” spring wheat planting intentions topped the average of pre-report expectations. The USDA reports appeared to be largely neutral for the soybean market relative to trade expectations.

USDA pegged 2024 U.S. corn planting intentions at 90.036 million acres, compared with trade estimates that averaged 91.829 million in a range from 90.000-93.800 million acres. Planting intentions were down 4.9% from the final 2023 plantings estimate of 94.641 million acres.

March 1 U.S. corn stocks were pegged by USDA at 8.347 billion bushels, compared with trade estimates that averaged 8.445 billion in a range from 8.129-8.800 billion bushels. March 1 stocks were still 12.9% above a year earlier and were the largest for the date in five years.

March 1 U.S. wheat stocks came in at 1.087 billion bushels, topping trade estimates that averaged 1.047 billion in a range from 1.000-1.081 billion bushels. March 1 wheat stocks were 15.5% above the March 1, 2023 stocks of 941 million bushels and were the largest for the date in three years.

USDA pegged 2024 U.S. “other” spring wheat planting intentions at 11.335 million acres compared with trade estimates that averaged 10.931 million in a range from 10.100-10.900 million. Planting intentions were 1.2% above last year’s final planted acreage estimate of 11.2 million.

USDA estimated 2024 U.S. soybean planting intentions at 86.510 million acres, up 3.4% from final 2023 planted area of 83.600 million acres, but closely in line with trade expectations that averaged 86.545 million acres in a range from 84.300-89.000 million.

March 1 U.S. soybean stocks were pegged by USDA at 1.845 billion bushels, up 9.4% from the year-earlier stocks of 1.687 billion, but 10 million bushels above the average of trade expectations, which ranged from 1.740-1.986 billion bushels.