Corn futures experienced mixed results on Thursday, with September futures inching up $0.0025 to $4.23, while December futures eased $0.0075 lower to $4.4150. Old crop corn sales for export reached $28.8 million bushels, and new crop sales added $30.2 million bushels, totaling $59.0 million bushels, which was at the lower end of analyst estimates. Corn export shipments, however, increased by 5% above the prior four-week average, totaling $71.5 million bushels, with Japan, Mexico, Taiwan, South Korea, and Colombia as top destinations. An all-time record of $471.78 million bushels of corn was used for ethanol in May, a 9.7% increase from April and 6.2% higher year-over-year, indicating strong demand that could tighten supplies.
Soybean prices also saw mixed results. September futures added $0.005 to reach $11.36, while November futures dropped $0.015 to $11.4775. Soybean exports were lackluster, with only $1.5 million bushels in old crop sales and $6.7 million bushels in new crop sales, totaling $8.2 million bushels, significantly below the analyst range of $23.9 million to $57.0 million bushels. This marked a marketing-year low for old crop sales, being 88% below the prior four-week average. Despite this, soybean shipments fared better at $14.3 million bushels, though still 11% below the prior four-week average, with Mexico, Japan, China, Egypt, and Indonesia being the top five destinations.
Weather is a significant factor, with intense heat waves impacting crops. Corn futures surged 1.9% on Monday after a heat wave damaged crops in France, where extreme weather may have affected almost a third of the French corn yield Bloomberg Terminal. Traders are closely monitoring hotter U.S. temperatures as well. However, the latest 72-hour cumulative precipitation map from NOAA forecasts $1 to $2 of rain for a band stretching from eastern Nebraska through southern Michigan between Friday and Monday. NOAA's 8-to-14-day outlook predicts seasonally wet conditions for the eastern Corn Belt between July 9 and July 15, which could provide relief from the heat, although warmer-than-normal temperatures are still expected for the Midwest and Plains. Traders are anticipating potential pricing opportunities this fall amidst an already volatile market in 2026.
