Corn futures moved sharply higher at the Sunday night open following the Pro Farmer yield projection released after the previous week’s Crop Tour. The rally extended into Monday morning, with prices climbing 12 to 13 cents. Friday had already seen late-session strength, with futures contracts advancing between 2 ¾ and 6 ½ cents across the board.
Pro Farmer’s yield estimate placed the US national yield at 173.2 bushels per acre, with total production projected at 15.344 billion bushels. Open interest declined by 12,307 contracts overall, though this figure was heavily influenced by a 32,494 contract decrease in September positions. For the week, September contracts gained 24 ¾ cents while December rallied 25 ¼ cents. The CmdtyView national average cash corn price rose 5 cents to $4.52 ½.
Speculative positioning data from the CFTC indicated that managed money traders held a net long position of 250,505 contracts in corn futures and options as of August 18, representing an 83,735 contract increase from the previous week. This growth came from a combination of new long positions and short covering activity.
USDA export sales data showed old crop corn commitments at 87.74 million metric tons, running 24% above the prior year and representing 102% of the USDA’s projection. New crop accumulated sales reached 11.391 million metric tons, trailing the previous year by 21.7% but still representing the fourth largest forward book since 2000. Brazilian harvest activity remained slow, and inventory levels remained tight, providing additional price support across the commodity complex.
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