Good morning. Grain prices are mostly lower as the back and forth within the broad range continues. Rain is moving through South Dakota and Minnesota this morning. Corn, beans, and wheat are all trying to hold on to modest weekly gains. Another month end for commodity markets. There were no deliveries against the August bean futures overnight. Meal deliveries totaled 6 contracts and bean oil deliveries totaled 1. The last trading day for August futures is August 13th. That is one day past the August 12th crop report. This report will have an updated production number for corn and beans. The USDA doesn’t do field work for the August number anymore, but it will take into account satellite data and the farmer survey. Not a lot of change in the weather forecast today. The cooldown has started over the Midwest with very tolerable temperatures forecasted for the first week of August. Especially in the eastern half of the Midwest. This, along with all the aerial work being done, will slow down maturity levels a bit. Still no general rain forecasted for the west and northern plains. Temps are expected to warm back up into the middle of August. How much can the good east make up for the dry areas of the west? That will be a closely watched question over the next few weeks. The commitment of traders’ report will be out this afternoon. The wheat tour estimated the North Dakota spring wheat yield at 29.1 bpa. This is down from 49 bpa last year. Argentina is 81.4% done with corn harvest. Lower water issues continue in Argentina. More cold weather was seen this week in Brazil. Those producers can’t catch a break. Crop ratings in the U.S. on Monday afternoon are expected to be steady to 2 points lower. More weather talk will be the focus coming out of the weekend and then the prep begins for the August crop report. Have a nice weekend.
Stanford Grain Company
