Corn Futures Dip Despite Weekly Gains in March

Market Overview and Commitment of Traders Insights

Corn futures finished the week with slight losses. Contracts dropped between 1 ¾ to 2 ¾ cents, influenced by the December contracts rolling off the board. However, the March futures managed to increase by 2 cents since last Friday. As for the Cash Corn price, the national average reported by cmdtyView decreased by 2 cents, now at $4.13.

Speculator Activity Remains Strong

Following Friday’s release of the Commitment of Traders data, it was revealed that speculative funds successfully added 77,670 contracts to their net long positions in corn futures and options by Tuesday’s close. This brought their net position to 165,890 contracts as of December 10, marking the highest level in 22 months. Meanwhile, commercial traders increased their net short position by 82,715 contracts, bringing their total to 386,100 contracts as of the same date.

Export Sales Show Significant Improvement

The latest weekly Export Sales report revealed that accumulated corn shipments have reached 12.567 million metric tons (MMT). This figure indicates a 31% increase compared to last year and represents 20% of the USDA’s latest export forecast, exceeding the average pace of 17%. Including unshipped sales, total commitments stand at 35.138 MMT, which is 29% above last year and accounts for 56% of the USDA target, with the average pace being at 53%.

Argentina’s Planting Progress Boosts Outlook

In Argentina, the Buenos Aires Grain Exchange reports that 55.6% of the corn crop has been planted, which is ahead of the typical schedule.

Dec 24 Corn closed at $4.30, down 1 ¾ cents.

Nearby Cash was priced at $4.13, down 2 cents.

Mar 25 Corn settled at $4.42, down 1 ½ cents.

May 25 Corn ended the day at $4.49 ¼, down 1 ¾ cents.

On the date of publication, Austin Schroeder did not hold any positions in the mentioned securities either directly or indirectly. All information in this article is for informational purposes only. For more details, please view the Barchart Disclosure Policy here.