U.S. agricultural futures rise

CHICAGO, Oct. 2 (Xinhua) — Wheat led the rise in Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT) agricultural futures on Monday.

The December delivery contract for corn, the most active one, increased by 12 cents or 2.52 percent, settling at $4.8875 per bushel. Meanwhile, December wheat saw a significant surge of 23.25 cents or 4.29 percent, closing at $5.6475 per bushel. Additionally, November soybean experienced a slight gain of 2 cents or 0.16 percent, ending at $12.77 per bushel.

The recovery of CBOT agricultural futures resulted from short covering in anticipation of the upcoming October U.S. Department of Agriculture Crop Report. Moreover, potential yield reductions due to the ongoing hot and dry weather trends in the Central U.S. contributed to the positive market performance.

Ahead of South American weather becoming a more influential factor, CBOT remains a trading market according to Chicago-based research company AgResource. It is expected that China will resume CBOT pricing later this week, and U.S. farmers are preparing to store their crops.

Notable transactions in the agricultural market include Mexico’s purchase of 210,000 metric tons of U.S. corn and China’s acquisition of 120,000 metric tons of U.S. soybeans. In addition, world wheat millers are seeking to secure Russian wheat for the first quarter of 2024.

The Ukrainian government has increased its estimate for the 2023 grain crop to 57.5 million metric tons, up by 2 percent compared to the previous estimate of 56.4 million metric tons in August.

The Central U.S. is expected to experience limited rainfall over the next 10 days, followed by an extended period of dry weather. This forecast will enable an active resumption of the harvest. Furthermore, much cooler temperatures are anticipated from Thursday onwards, with potential frost in Northern Wisconsin and Northern Minnesota during the weekend.