Great info, thanks Saracen.And from Agrimoney:"Corn prices jump...

Great info, thanks Saracen.

And from Agrimoney:

"Corn prices jump as US stocks seen staying tight
Corn futures soared 3% in Chicago after US officials, citing China's spate of import orders, curbed expectations for domestic supplies of the grain despite the largest sowings since World War II.

The US Department of Agriculture lifted estimates for corn inventories for both 2010-11 and next season, reflecting data two weeks ago showing farmers had planted far more of the crop than had been thought, and that stocks left over from last harvest were bigger than had been expected.

However, the increases were less than the market had been expecting, reflecting the impact of lower price expectations fostered by the raised supplies in stoking demand.

Corn growers can now expect to receive $5.50-6.50 per bushel, $0.50 less than forecast last month, if a price which remains at a record high.

'Increased demand from China'

The estimate for use of corn by biofuels plants was lifted by a total of 150m bushels over the two seasons to reflect "an improved outlook for ethanol producer margins", which Morgan Stanley said last week were the highest since 2009.

Wasde US corn estimates, change on last and (on market forecast)

2010-11 carryover stocks: 880m bushels, +90m bushels, (-25m bushels)

2011-12 carryover stocks: 870m bushels, +175m bushels, (-124m bushels)

2011-12 feed use: 5.05bn bushels, +50m bushels, (N/A)

2011-12 ethanol use: 5.15bn bushels, +100m bushels, (N/A)

2011-12 exports: 1.90bn bushels, +100m bushels, (N/A)

Feed use for 2011-12 was lifted by 50m bushels, while the export estimate was hiked by 100m bushels "mostly reflecting increased demand from China", the USDA said.

The hopes reflected, besides a confirmed Chinese corn purchase this month, "favourable pricing opportunities for US corn into southern China, where growing demand is reducing stocks".

US corn inventories will end this season at 880m bushels (22.3m tonnes), 25m bushels fewer than analysts had expected.

And, in a particular surprise, the USDA forecast inventories tightening over next season to finish at 870m bushels (22.1m tonnes). Analysts had expected a stocks to swell to 994m bushels.

Market reaction

Indeed, the data highlighted the resilience of demand for corn, worldwide, even in the face of higher prices, which touched a record high in Chicago last month, Sal Gilbertie, the head of Teucrium Trading, said.

"What jumps out is that corn demand is on a global basis expected to rise 2% year on year. Even with the price increases, corn demand is not abating," said Mr Gilbertie, whose company issues exchange-traded commodity products.

"We are producing a pretty good supply and demand balance, but we are not producing enough to rebuild stocks," he told Agrimoney.com, adding that the report should be supportive for corn prices.

'Support the complex'

Darrel Good, farm economist at the University of Illinois, concurred with the pricing analysis, highlighting that the "projection of US year-ending corn stocks is larger than projected last month, but much smaller than some of the pre-report guesses".

Benson Quinn Commodities said: "Despite the weakness being experienced in the outside markets, expect the firmer corn market to support the rest of the complex."


In Chicago, the best-traded December lot stood 3.8% higher at $6.56 ? a bushel in late deals, a turnaround from an overnight Globex session in which the lot fell 2.0%.


The September contract was 3.5% higher at $6.65 ? a bushel."

http://www.agrimoney.com/news/corn-prices-jump-as-us-stocks-seen-staying-tight--3357.html

I like what I see in the grain futures presently as prices are firming nicely once again. And this is without any major negative yield impacts thru extreme weather events which seem to be the norm nowadays.