Corn prices headed lower on Thursday to touch their lowest level in almost two weeks after the U.S. Department of Agriculture raised its U.S. production forecast, while soybeans prices rose on a slightly lower production outlook.
In a monthly report, the USDA lifted its 2024-2025 U.S. corn-production forecast by 39 million bushels to 15.2 million bushels, citing a 0.5-bushel increase in yield to 183.6 bushels per acre. It also cut its 2024-2025 U.S. soybean-production forecast by 3 million bushels to 4.6 billion bushels.
Old-crop crush demand was increased by 5 million bushels, lowering new-crop beginning stocks by a like amount, said Darin Newsom, senior market analyst at Barchart. The crush refers to the physical process of converting soybeans into oil and meal, and the difference in value of the soybeans to that of those products, according to the USDA. “All told, new-crop ending stocks were guessed to be 10 [million bushels] less than last month,” said Newsom.
December corn fell by 6 cents, or 1.5%, to $3.98 3/4 a bushel in Chicago, after a low at $3.97, the lowest since Aug. 30. November soybeans traded at $10.01 1/2 a bushel, up a penny, or 0.1%.