Corn futures closed higher each day last week off support from soybeans, the weakening dollar, and extended weather forecasts showing drier conditions in South America.
The soybean rally picked up last week, and the market is trading above $12 per bushel for the first time since August 2014, pulling corn up with it. Adding support to both markets has been the continued slide in value of the dollar, breaking below 90 on the dollar index for the first time since early April 2018. Should values fall another 1.2 points, we will be at six-year lows.
With the shrinking dollar, U.S. corn remains the cheapest option in the global market. Export sales on the books continue to swell, now approaching nearly 30 MMT and well above the record set in 2017/18 at 24 MMT. The pace of physical shipments, however, remains somewhat subdued. The week before last, export shipments tallied 34.9 million bushels, which is well below the weekly pace of 76 million bushels needed to hit the current USDA target of 2.650 billion bushels.
IQ subscribers, log in to read more.
Leave A Comment