Corn prices are falling amid China’s plans to buy Brazilian grain

The July corn futures in Chicago fell 3.2% to $ 300 / t from the beginning of the week, and the June corn futures in Paris fell 4.6% to € 347.75 / t or $ 371.4 / t news about the signing of an agreement between China and Brazil on the supply of corn, data on accelerating sowing in the United States and steps to unblock exports from Ukrainian ports.

During the week, another 23% of the area in the United States was sown with corn, and as of May 22, 72% had already been sown, compared to 89% last year and 79% on average over 5 years. Heavy rains in the Midwestern United States have improved soil moisture and crop condition.

Exports of corn from the United States for the week increased by 70% to 1.7 million tons, and in total during the season reached 40.8 million tons.

China has signed a phytosanitary agreement that will allow it to import corn from Brazil as early as September, but some more approvals will be needed. This step is related to blocking exports from Ukraine, and will negatively affect the supply of corn from both Ukraine and the United States in the new season.

Brazil has already started harvesting second-harvest corn, and plans to export 1.25 million tons in May.

June futures for Black Sea corn in Chicago on Monday fell 1% to $ 341.25 / t.

Markets are following the steps taken to create export corridors to export grain from Ukrainian ports, but Russia is demanding sanctions in exchange for passing ships.

As of May 19, 4.3 million hectares of corn were sown in Ukraine out of the planned 4.85 million hectares, which is significantly lower than last year’s 5.47 million hectares.

This season, the EU is actively importing corn, primarily due to increased supplies from Ukraine across the western borders. As of May 22, the European Union imported 14.66 million tons of corn (with a forecast of 15 million tons), which is 1.02 million tons ahead of last year’s rate.

Tags: Ukraine, China, corn, Brazil, EU, prices, USA