May 5, 2025

Ron Finklestien

“Corn Prices Plummet, Approaching April Lows This Monday”

Corn Futures Decline as Planting Makes Progress Across the U.S.

Corn futures ended the Monday session with front-month contracts falling by 14 to 15 cents. New crop contracts saw declines of 7 to 8 cents. The nearby CmdtyView national average Cash Corn price decreased by 15 cents, settling at $4.24 3/4. The market faced pressure at the start of the week due to favorable planting conditions in the Corn Belt, beneficial weather in Brazil’s second corn crop region, and a weakening oil market.

Crop Progress Updates

According to Crop Progress data released this afternoon, the U.S. corn crop is currently 40% planted as of May 4, outpacing the 5-year average by 1 percentage point. Emergence is reported at 11%, exceeding the 5-year average of 9%.

Export Inspections and Shipment Data

The USDA’s Export Inspections report revealed that 1.61 MMT (63.32 million bushels) of corn were shipped for the week ending May 1. This figure represents a modest decline of 3.48% from the previous week but is 23.81% higher compared to the same week last year. Notably, Mexico was the largest destination, receiving 557,095 MT, followed by Japan with 433,524 MT and Colombia with 165,983 MT. Total shipments for the marketing year have reached 42.515 MMT (1.674 billion bushels), marking an increase of 28.8% from the same period last year.

Brazil’s Crop Projections

Recent estimates from Celeres now peg Brazil’s corn crop at 135.4 MMT, which is an adjustment upward of 0.8 MMT from earlier projections.

Market Closing Prices

On May 25, corn closed at the following prices:

  • May Corn: $4.46 1/2, down 14 3/4 cents
  • Nearby Cash: $4.24 3/4, down 15 cents
  • Jul 25 Corn: $4.54 1/4, down 14 3/4 cents
  • Dec 25 Corn: $4.43, down 7 1/4 cents
  • New Crop Cash: $4.02, down 7 1/4 cents

On the date of publication, Austin Schroeder did not hold positions in any of the securities mentioned in this article. All information and data are presented solely for informational purposes. For further details, please view the Barchart Disclosure Policy here.

The views and opinions expressed herein are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.

Latest articles