Grain traders are watching the weather as US corn enters its critical pollination phase. Two-thirds of corn and 60% of soybeans were affected by the drought through July 4, according to the United States Department of Agriculture.
“Rain makes the grain and we’ve had some pretty good rains. There’s some question as to how much it’s rained and how much good it’s done, but I would expect the (crop status) ratings on Monday to go from stable to bullish,” he said. Mark Gold, managing partner of Top Third Ag Marketing.
Forecasts call for normal to above-normal precipitation in the central and southern Midwest in six to 15 days, while the far northwest region will remain largely dry, Commodity Weather Group said.
Corn for December delivery on the Chicago Stock Exchange was down 9.5 cents at $4.97 a bushel, while November soybeans were down 19.5 cents at $13.20 a bushel.