CHICAGO- US corn and soybean futures fell as recent welcome rains across the Midwest farm belt, and forecasts for more next week, aided crops that had been suffering under an early season drought.
Soybeans, which notched a four-month high last week, ended down 1.9 percent for the week, while corn was little changed in the week after hitting the lowest point in 2-1/2 years at midweek.
Grain traders are monitoring shifts in weather as more US corn enters its critical pollination stage. Two-thirds of corn and 60 percent of soybeans were affected by drought as of July 4, according to the US Department of Agriculture.
“Rain makes grain and we’ve had some pretty good rains. There are some questions as to how much has fallen and how much good it has done, but I would expect that the (crop condition) ratings on Monday should be steady to up,” said Mark Gold, managing partner at Top Third Ag Marketing.
Normal to above-normal precipitation was forecast for the central and southern Midwest in the six- to 15-day period, and the northwest corner of the region was seen remaining largely dry, according to Commodity Weather Group.
Chicago Board of Trade December corn ended down 12 cents at $4.94-1/2 a bushel while November soybeans fell 21-3/4 cents to $13.17-3/4 a bushel. – Reuters
