BASIC & RECENT MARKET INFO

Tidbits Mexican Corn: The USDA attaché to Mexico sees their 2025/26 corn crop up 8% from last year at 25 million mts (USDA 24.8). Yesterday morning, the USDA announced the sale of 100,593 mts of 2025 crop corn and 22,354 mts of 2026 crop corn to Mexico. PMIs: Composite (Manufacturing & Services) Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) was reported for: USA at 53.6 vs 54.1 expected Europe at 51.2 vs 51.1 expected Great Britain at 51.0 vs 52.9 expected Australia at 52.1 vs 50.4 expect

Tidbits Basis: It has been dry in the Eastern Corn Belt since late July and before that in many places. That means the Ohio River is low and that means the Lower Mississippi is going to be low enough sometime this week that barges will not be able to be completely loaded and that means higher barge rates, weaker basis, which has already been factored into current bids. More than 50% of the water in the Lower Mississippi comes from the Ohio River. Venezuela & Oil: A large buil

Tidbits Soybean crush:  The USDA July soybean crush report will be issued tomorrow. It is expected to be up 7.2% from a year ago at 207.2 million bushels, the largest July crush on record and 5th largest of any month.   India-Pakistan:  More than a million people in Pakistan have been displaced in the Punjab province as the worst flooding there in four decades caused havoc in hundreds of villages and submerged vital grains crops. Torrential monsoon rain and neighboring India'

Tidbits Flash sale: Yesterday morning, the USDA announced the sale of 128,000 mts of new crop corn to unknown. Oils: Karen Braun reported that the U.S. cooking oil imports fell to a 16-month low in June, but first half 2025 used cooking oil imports were up 9% from a year ago. Starting January 2026, only biofuel feedstock from Canada, Mexico, and the U.S. will be eligible for the tax credits. North America soybean oil and canola oil will be the main feedstock for biofuels and

Tidbits Reuters reported yesterday that President Trump  and China's leader Xi held a phone call  that lasted about 90 minutes. The primary topic was trade. U.S. and Chinese officials plan to meet in person soon, resuming formal trade negotiations. Soybeans were higher because of that news. President Trump also had a phone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin following the Ukrainian drone attack on Russian airfields. Vladimir Putin stated that he will be obliged to resp

Tidbits The USDA reported the crush numbers for April after the close yesterday. The soybean crush was 202 million bushels. That is 13.5% more beans crushed this past April than April 2024! The canola crush was 161,022 tons, down 14.6% from a year ago. Cottonseed once refined was 24.7 million lbs, down 12%. The April corn crush was 475 million bushels, up 1% from a year ago. Corn for ethanol was also up 1% at 426 million bushels. In April, Canadian canola  crushing was 0.92 m

Highlights The CBOT ag markets will reopen this evening at their normal times. Crude oil is trading normal hours today.  President Trump announced Sunday the 50% tariff on everything from the EU was delayed from 1 June until 9 July as the EU asked for more time to prepare a comprehensive economic and trade proposal for a long term trade deal with the United States. Corn and beans were lower Friday supposedly because Trump announced the 50% tariff on everything from the EU beg

Tidbits The total U.S. soybean crush for March  was expected to be 205.5 million bushels, but USDA reported yesterday afternoon it was 206.572 million bushels, up 3% from a year ago. The March canola crush was 200,953 tons, down about 5% from a year ago. The total corn crushed in March was 504 million bushels and the corn for ethanol was 454 million bushels, both down 4% from a year ago. New unemployment claims  in the U.S. for the last reporting week were above average at 24

Tidbits StoneX’s fertilizer guy, Josh Linville, reports NOLA urea values have hit $450 for the first time since the end of 2022. For reference, 2022 ended with December corn prices at $6.00.   South Korean flour mills bought 50,000 mts of milling wheat  from the U.S.   Jordan has issued a tender to buy up to 120,000 mts of milling wheat. The S&P Global Composite (services and manufacturing) Purchasing Managers Index ( PMI ) for the U.S. was reported at 51.2, down from last mo

Highlights Pro Farmer released their U.S. planting projections  on Friday. They expect 3.5% more corn acres at 93.75 million acres and a 2.4% decrease in soybean acres to 85 million. Spring wheat acres are expected to be down while durum wheat may see a slight increase in plantings. They see total wheat at 45.5 million acres, down 1.5% from last year. Some other surveys showed estimates about 95.4 million of corn and 82.75 million of soybeans. The CHS outlook for U.S. spring

Tidbits U.S. Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick said President Trump is in constant contact with both Mexico and Canadian officials regarding a possible agreement that would pull the 25% tariffs applied on Tuesday. He said Mexico's team was cooperating; Canada's team not so much.    On Tuesday, the stock markets and crude oil market crashed, in large part, due to a GDP forecasting model used by the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta. The dollar is now 104.25 on the index, down

Highlights Three oil tankers  in the Mediterranean Sea and another in the Baltic Sea, have been damaged by blasts this month. All four had recently loaded crude oil at Russian ports. The causes of the incidents remain unclear, but it appears to be terrorism against Russia. Italy has launched a terrorism investigation after two explosions blew a hole below the waterline of the Greek-operated oil tanker while it was anchored on Saturday off the southern port of Savona-Vado and

Highlights Yesterday, S&P Global reported China’s PMI rose to 51.5 in November, the highest since June as new export orders rose for the first time in four months. The market expected China’s PMI to be only 50.5. This is one the strongest one-month PMI gain ever for any country! China's November factory production expanded at the fastest pace in five months in November. New orders, including those from abroad, led to a solid rise in production, pushing manufacturers' optimism

Highlights Rain has fallen the past three days in the Brazilian states of Mato Grosso and Goias and the Brazilian National Weather Service (Inmet) is forecasting more chances of rain over the next few days with amounts of 0.8 to 1.2 inches (20 to 30 mm) with the possibility of high winds and hail. Rainfall amounts and coverage should increase in central Brazil starting the second week of October. After 90 days without any significant precipitation, coverage was spotty and am

Highlights Pro Farm Tour Results for Wednesday Iowa and Illinois: Tidbits The US manufacturing Purchasing Managers Index (PMI) was 47.0; the market expected 48.9. Last month's manufacturing PMI was 49.0. The US services PMI was 51.0; the market expected of 52.1. Last month’s services PMI was 52.3. A PMI number below 50 means the industry is expecting less business in the coming month than the previous month. As a result of this poor economic news. The stock market and many c

Market Schedule The CBOT will close its normal time today, but will not reopen until 8:30 AM Central on Wednesday. Trading volume will be light today as a lot of people are taking a four day weekend. The USDA will release its Weekly Crop Progress report at 3 PM Central this afternoon. The market wants to know how much the corn and bean crops improved. USDA will also release the crushing numbers for May at 2 PM. Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) is the result of a survey of

Highlights China's February manufacturing PMI was expected to be 50.5, but it came in at 52.6 this morning, the highest since April 2012... eleven years, Folks! The non-manufacturing PMI was highest since March 2021. An expanding Chinese economy means more crude oil, soybeans, corn, pork and beef. Many of you are looking for a respected market advisor who will tell you to sell your corn, wheat, and beans. We are not going to do it, so Bill Crowder is your man. Bill is a cot

Highlights The S&P Purchasing Managers Index (PMI) was released Monday. A PMI of 50 means the managers who do the buying for their business plan to buy the same number of inputs next month as they did the previous month. The S&P Index PMI, which includes US services and manufacturing was 47.3 in October, down from 49.5 in September. We did not think this news was nearly as significant as the market did. Certainly, China’s announcement it will continue its “zero covid” policy

Highlights The Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) is collected monthly. The person who buys the inputs for their company is asked if he will buy more or less inputs in the next 30 days. A PMI of 50 means the same amount of inputs are expected to be bought in the coming month as the previous month. The purchasing managers index has become a much followed monthly index to measure countries’ economic health. Yesterday’s USA PMI data was not nearly as negative as expected. The man