3 Big Things Today, October 30, 2024

1. Wheat, Corn Futures Lower Overnight

Wheat and corn futures were lower in overnight trading amid favorable weather in several growing areas around the world. 

Rain fell overnight in parts of the Oklahoma panhandle and more showers are forecast for the weekend, according to the National Weather Service. 

More rain is projected for the area early next week, the agency said. 

In Australia, limited rains this week will allow farmers into fields to harvest their wheat crop, said Don Keeney, an agricultural meteorologist with Maxar. 

“Mostly dry weather should prevail through Friday,” he said. “Light rain should favor eastern Queensland.” 

In Argentina, meanwhile, precipitation later this week is expected to improve soil conditions for early growth and central and eastern growing areas in the South American country will improve into the weekend, Keeney said. 

Rain in northern Brazil also will boost prospects for corn and soybeans, Keeney said. While central and southern regions will see dry weather, they should see some improvement next week. 

Wheat futures for December delivery fell 4½¢ to $5.66 a bushel overnight on the Chicago Board of Trade, and Kansas City futures dropped 8¢ to $5.66¼ a bushel. 

Corn futures lost 1½¢ to $4.12¼ a bushel.

Soybean futures for January delivery rose 3¼¢ to $9.82¼ a bushel. Soymeal was unchanged at $301.80 a short ton, and soy oil added 0.52¢ to 43.32¢ a pound. 

2. Ukraine Wheat, Corn Crops Likely Smaller Than Expected

Ukraine’s 2024/2025 wheat and corn output likely will come in behind previous estimates, according to an attaché report from the Ag Department’s office in Kyiv. 

Production of the wheat crop is forecast at 22.3 million metric tons in the war-torn country, the office said in a report. 

USDA earlier this month pegged output in Ukraine, where the harvest recently finished, at 22.9 million metric tons. Farmers in the country produced 23 million metric tons of the grain in the previous marketing year. 

Ukraine’s wheat exports in the 2023/2024 marketing year, meanwhile, jumped 9% to 18.4 million metric tons, the attaché report said. 

Corn production is projected at 23.3 million metric tons, down from the Oct. 24 forecast for 26.2 million metric tons, according to agency data. 

That’s also down about 25% from the 2023/2024 marketing year, which was a bumper crop featuring the second-highest yield in the past decade, USDA said. 

Barley output in Ukraine is seen at 5.5 million metric tons in the current marketing year, down 5% versus the previous year. 

Exports of barley in the 2023/2024 season fell 9% year over year to 2.5 million metric tons, the attaché report said. 

3. Freeze Warnings Issued for the Southern Plains

Freeze warnings have been issued for the southern Plains where hard red winter wheat is growing, according to the National Weather Service. 

Temperatures overnight into Thursday in the Oklahoma and Texas panhandles are expected to drop to around 29° Fahrenheit, the agency said in a report early this morning. The warnings will run from 1 a.m. to 10 a.m. tomorrow. 

Some areas including Harding and Union counties in New Mexico will see temperatures fall as low as 26°, NWS said. 

Freeze warnings also will take effect in much of western Kansas and Oklahoma, parts of New Mexico and eastern Colorado, and a few counties in southern Nebraska. 

Dry weather is also a problem in the southern Plains as very dry grasses combined with intense wind and low humidity will create tinderbox-like conditions.

Winds today will be sustained from 20 to 30 mph with gusts of up to 40 mph expected, the agency said. Relative humidity will drop to about 12%.