Market News & Headlines >> Soybean planting, emergence record slow

Monday afternoon’s weekly U.S. crop update pegged corn and soybean planting progress in line with trade expectations, but the planting pace was still the slowest on record in USDA data going back to 1980.  

Meanwhile, USDA’s first condition ratings for the 2019 corn crop were also in line with trade expectations, but below last year and the five-year average for the first rating of the season. 

USDA pegged U.S. corn planting progress at 83% as of Sunday, up 16 percentage points from a week earlier, but still 19 points below the five-year average and the slowest pace on record in USDA data going back to 1980. USDA estimated that 62% of the U.S. crop had emerged, up 16 points from a week earlier, but 31 points behind the five-year average. The emergence rate was the slowest since USDA started tracking U.S. crop emergence in 1999.  

USDA rated U.S. corn conditions 59% good/excellent and 9% poor/very poor compared with 77% good/excellent and 4% poor/very poor a year earlier. Last year’s initial crop rating was 79% good/excellent and the five-year average for the initial crop rating of the season was 73%. 

USDA put U.S. soybean planting progress at 60%, up 21 points from a week earlier, but still 28 points behind the five-year average and the slowest pace on record for the date. USDA said only 34% of the U.S. soybean crop had emerged, up 15 points from a week earlier, but 29 points behind the five-year average and the slowest pace recorded in USDA data going back to 1999.