Soybeans Advance on Concern Dry Weather in U.S. to Erode Yields

August 21st, 2013

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Category: Grains, Oilseeds

Soybeans take a hit(Bloomberg) – Soybeans and corn rose in Chicago as forecasts for dry weather in the U.S. Midwest threatened yields after rain delayed crop development this year.

Southern Minnesota and central Iowa may see 0.5 inch (1.3 centimeters) of rain at most tonight and the rest of the Midwest will be mostly dry through Aug. 25, DTN said yesterday. U.S. corn and soybean crops are maturing more slowly than normal after planting was late and temperatures were below average, a U.S. Department of Agriculture report showed Aug. 19, leaving crops at risk for frost in the next few months.

“Weather conditions still bring reason to worry about production potential,” Paris-based farm adviser Agritel said today in an online report. “Changing in weather conditions will decide the trend of the coming weeks.”

Soybeans for delivery in November gained 1.2 percent to $13.065 a bushel at 6:29 a.m. on the Chicago Board of Trade, erasing a drop of as much as 0.4 percent. Prices yesterday touched $13.0975, the highest since June 19, before closing lower. The most-active contract fell 7.3 percent this year on speculation U.S. production would rebound from 2012’s drought.

Soybean yields in Nebraska may be below average, according to findings on the Pro Farmer Midwest Crop Tour, which is viewing fields this week in seven states. Samples taken from 229 fields in Nebraska yesterday showed about 1,139 pods on average per three square feet, up 27 percent from last year while below the three-year average of 1,162 pods. Most of the state was experiencing “abnormally dry” to “extreme” drought as of Aug. 13, the U.S. Drought Monitor shows.

Corn, Wheat

Corn for delivery in December rose 0.6 percent to $4.7825 a bushel. Futures slumped 2.1 percent by the close yesterday after reaching $4.8675, the highest since July 24.

Corn yields in Indiana will climb 48 percent from a year earlier to an average of 167.4 bushels an acre, while Nebraska yields were pegged at 154.9 bushels, according to crop tour findings. The USDA projects a record 13.26 billion-bushel national harvest.

Wheat for delivery in December rose 0.8 percent to $6.51 a bushel. In Paris, milling wheat for delivery in November added 0.3 percent to 185 euros ($247) a metric ton on NYSE Liffe.

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