1. Grains, Beans Slightly Lower in Overnight Trading

Grains and beans were slightly lower in overnight trading as growers finish planting.

Producers in the U.S. have likely finished seeding corn after the USDA said last week that 97% was already in the ground. Soybean planting was 86% planted as of last Sunday.

The USDA will update its Crop Progress Report today.

The corn crop was rated 75% good or excellent last week, up from the previous year’s 59%, the agency said. About 72% of soybeans earning top ratings.

Dry weather is expected in much of the Midwest this week, which should help farmers finish soybeans planting.

The USDA said on Friday that an unknown country bought 120,000 metric tons of soybeans for delivery in the marketing year that starts on September 1. On Thursday, the agency said China bought 720,000 metric tons of beans for delivery in the 2019-2020 and 2020-2021 marketing years.

Also weighing on prices, however, was last week’s World Agricultural Supply and Demand Estimate Report that pegged global corn stocks at 337.9 million metric tons at the end of the 2020-2021 marketing year.

While that’s down slightly from the previous month’s forecast, it’s still up from the 312.9 million tons projected for the prior year.

Global soybean inventories, meanwhile, are forecast at 96.3 million metric tons at the end of the 2020-2021 marketing year, little changed from the previous month’s forecast and down slightly from the year-earlier 99.2 million metric tons.

Corn futures for July delivery were down 1¾¢ to $3.28¼ a bushel overnight on the Chicago Board of Trade.

Wheat futures for July delivery fell ½¢ to $5.01½ a bushel, while Kansas City futures dropped 2¢ to $4.46½ a bushel. 

Soybean futures lost 4¢ to $8.67¼ a bushel overnight. Soy meal futures dropped $1.40 to $287.60 a short ton, and soy oil declined 0.41¢ to 27.09¢ a pound.

2. Speculators Increase Bearish Bets in Corn to Highest Level in 14 Months

Money managers increased their net-short positions, or bets on lower prices, in corn to the largest level in more than 14 months last week while increasing their bullish bets on soybeans, according to the Commodity Futures Trading Commission.

Speculators in the seven days that ended on June 9 raised their bearish bets on corn to a net short of 301,873 futures contracts, the CFTC said.

That’s up from 286,207 contracts a week earlier and the largest such position since April 30, 2019, government data show.

Investors are focused on what’s expected to be a large U.S. corn crop. Producers are expected by the USDA to plant 97 million acres with corn, up from 89.7 million a year earlier.

Production is pegged at almost 16 billion bushels, up from 13.6 million, bringing ending stocks to 3.32 billion bushels, an increase from 2.1 million the previous year, the USDA said in a report last week.

Investors, meanwhile, held a net-long position, or bets on higher prices, of 19,132 soybean futures contracts as of June 9, the CFTC said.

That’s up from 7,134 contracts a week earlier and the largest such position since May 12.

In wheat, speculators held a net-short position of 22,128 soft red winter futures as of last week, the agency said in its report. That’s up from 9,812 contracts a week earlier and the largest bearish position since May 28, 2019.

Money managers held a net-short of 18,849 hard red winter futures contracts, down from 24,281 contracts a week earlier, the smallest bearish position in the grain since May 19, the CFTC said.

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3. Red-Flag Warning Issued For Parts of Southern Plains; Storms Forecast in Nebraska

A red-flag warning – an indication of extremely dry conditions – has been issued for much of eastern Colorado and western Kansas where hard red winter wheat is being harvested.

Winds will be strong again Monday with gusts near 40 mph this afternoon and evening, according to the National Weather Service. Humidity is pegged at about 15%, the NWS said in a report early this morning.

The strong winds will continue through at least Wednesday.

“A elevated risk of wildfire spread will certainly continue, but minimum relative humidity will increase somewhat, working against the wildfire threat,” the agency said.

Farther north, thunderstorms are forecast in parts of eastern Nebraska and western Iowa today. Sever storms aren’t anticipated and the threat will last only through midmorning, the NWS said.