Ethanol helps boost corn prices

Galesburg.com
The Register-Mail
Posted Dec 04, 2009 @ 02:08 PM

Corn, soybean exports to slow in spring.

Urbana — While the late, slow harvest and a solid rate of consumption explain much of the recent strength in corn and soybean prices, those factors do not appear to explain all of it. According to University of Illinois Economist Darrel Good, the market is well aware, for example, that the pace of U.S. soybean exports and export sales will slow dramatically by the spring of 2010.

“The seasonal decline may be much sharper than normal due to prospects for record South American production,” Good said. “The lack of profitability in the domestic production of livestock and livestock products and the sharp increase in availability of distillers grains point to weak feed demand for corn and soybean meal. In addition, corn and soybean acreage in the U.S. will likely increase in 2010 as a result of fewer acres of wheat and expired Conservation Reserve Program contracts.”

Read the full story