The drought that has put a severe dent in the US corn crop is now threatening to do the same kind of damage to the soybean crop. Corn, which is planted and harvested earlier than soybeans, has been in the spotlight for months now, while there was still hope that soybeans might escape.
The US Department of Agriculture (USDA) has lowered the soybean crop estimate by 13% from last year’s average, and according to MarketWatch, at a private analysts’ tour yesterday there was additional confirmation that the soybean crop is going to be small. The latest USDA estimate calls for production of about 2.7 billion bushels.
The forecast for export quantities of soybeans fell to 1.11 billion bushels, about 25% lower than last month’s forecast. The largest customer for US soybean oil is China, and the Chinese have been boosting purchases for a while now from last year’s soybean crop. Still, China’s forecast imports from the US total 59.5 million tons.
Prices rose to $17.43/bushel today, still below the record price of $17.575/bushel set in July, but close and sure to climb even higher as the harvest begins in earnest.
Paul Ausick
Cash Back Credit Cards Have Never Been This Good
Credit card companies are at war, handing out free rewards and benefits to win the best customers. A good cash back card can be worth thousands of dollars a year in free money, not to mention other perks like travel, insurance, and access to fancy lounges. See our top picks for the best credit cards today. You won’t want to miss some of these offers.
Flywheel Publishing has partnered with CardRatings for our coverage of credit card products. Flywheel Publishing and CardRatings may receive a commission from card issuers.
Thank you for reading! Have some feedback for us?
Contact the 24/7 Wall St. editorial team.
Latest from 24/7
Our expert who first called NVIDIA in 2009 is predicting 2025 will see a historic AI breakthrough.
You can follow him investing $500,000 of his own money on our top AI stocks for free.