(AgriNews) – As farmers begin to prepare and make decisions regarding their 2017 crop, eyes turn toward the market to see how the 2016 crop fared and where the prices will be in the coming months.
Chris Hurt, a professor of agricultural economics at Purdue University, shared what farmers might expect from the grain markets in 2017.
Corn
“We are going to have corn prices that will be the lowest prices in 10 years,” Hurt said, adding that individuals would have to look back to the 2006 corn crop to find one lower.
He said that the average price for the 2016 corn crop will be $3.50 bushel in coming months, which is the lowest price in years. The agricultural economics expert attributes the low prices to record corn production, as well as record-setting yields.
Hurt noted that this was the third record-setting year in a row for corn throughout the U.S., and the high yields and excellent production were a result of good weather.
He added that new technology available to farmers, including better ways to manage weed and pest issues, also were a factor in the high yields.
Soybeans
Hurt said that the U.S. soybean crop also has seen record-breaking yields and production over the last three years.
“During the ’14, ’15 and ’16 crops, a new record was set each year,” he said.
Hurt said farmers can expect to see soybean prices around $9.60 in the coming months for the 2016 crop, which is up a bit from the 2015 soybean price of $9.10 per bushel.
“These prices are low compared to some years when beans were hitting $12 a bushel, but with high yields, soybeans will come close to paying cost,” Hurt said.
He added that soybean prices still are faring well due to South America soybean production being down last year because of bad weather.
Hurt noted that if production is normal in 2017 and the weather during the spring is fair, individuals should expect to see 3 percent or 4 percent more soybean acres throughout the U.S.
“Soybean prices may go back to $9 or under a bushel in the fall of 2017 with normal weather,” Hurt said.
Wheat
U.S. wheat estimates for the 2016 crop will be close to $3.70 a bushel, which Hurt said will be the lowest price farmers have seen since the 2005 wheat crop.
“We expect to see an acreage drop in the 2017 wheat crop,” he said.
Hurt said that the drop in U.S. wheat acres should help to strengthen the market for the 2017 crop, which could cause prices to jump up by 30 to 40 cents per bushel.
