By John Hawkins/RFD
SPRINGFIELD – Prices for corn and soybeans rallied after USDA’s final 2015 crop numbers were lower than the trade expected. Illinois’ wheat acres for 2016 totaled 530,000, down 2 percent from 2015.
Corn for grain production is estimated at 13.6 billion bushels, down slightly from the November forecast and down 4 percent from the 2014 estimate. The average yield in the United States is estimated at 168.4 bushels per acre. This is down 0.9 bushel from the November forecast and 2.6 bushels below the 2014 average yield of 171.0 bushels per acre. Area harvested for grain is estimated at 80.7 million acres, up slightly from the November forecast but down 3 percent from the 2014 acreage.
Soybean production in 2015 totaled a record 3.93 billion bushels, down 1 percent from the November forecast but up slightly from 2014. The average yield per acre is estimated at a record high 48.0 bushels, 0.3 bushel below the November forecast but 0.5 bushel above the 2014 yield. Harvested area is down less than 1 percent from last year’s record acreage to 81.8 million acres.
Illinois’ corn production for 2015 was finalized at 2.012 billion bushels, with an average yield at 175 bushels/acre. The state’s 2015 soybean harvest totaled 544.3 million bushels, with an average yield of 56.0 bushels/acre.
Audio: We have comments from AgriVisor’s Dale Durchholz about the impact from today’s USDA reports.
2015-16 South American crops
Forecasts came in at or above trade estimates for the upcoming South American harvest:
Argentina corn: 25.6 million tons
Argentina soybeans: 57.0 million tons
Brazil corn: 81.5 million tons
Brazil soybeans: 100.0 million tons
December 1 Grain Stocks
Grain stocks came in lower than expected for corn/soybeans; higher than expected for wheat.
Corn: 11.212 billion bushels
Soybeans: 2.715 billion bushels
Wheat: 1.738 billion bushels
2016 Winter Wheat Seedings
Soft Red Winter (SRW) wheat seeded area is about 6.72 million acres, down 5 percent from last year. Acreage decreases from last year are estimated in most southern SRW growing States, while most of the States in the northern half of the region seeded more acres than in 2015. Illinois’ winter wheat acres totaled 530,000 — down 10,000 acres from 2015.
