BLBG:Corn Slides for Second Day as USDA May Raise Global Inventories Forecast
Corn fell for a second day in Chicago on speculation the U.S. will boost its forecast for global inventories of the grain.
Corn stockpiles on Oct. 1 may be pegged at 121.77 million metric tons in a Department of Agriculture report today, a Bloomberg News survey of 12 analysts shows. That’s up 3.7 percent from a month-ago USDA estimate. USDA figures released June 30 showed domestic corn inventories were higher than estimated and sowing exceeded expectations, sending prices down by the exchange limit in Chicago.
“After the end-of-June surprise, nobody seems to fancy going into this report too long, or with any huge degree of confidence,” Dave Norris, an independent feed broker in the U.S. who has traded grain since 1979, said by e-mail. “The smart money is continuing to exit.”
Corn for December delivery declined 14 cents, or 2.2 percent, to $6.1875 a bushel by 12:26 p.m. London time on the Chicago Board of Trade. The grain has plunged 17 percent since the end of May.
Inventories may total 118.5 million tons on Oct. 1, 2012, according to the survey. That’s up 5.9 percent from the USDA’s month-ago estimate. The U.S. is the world’s biggest corn producer and exporter.
Wheat for September delivery fell 19.5 cents, or 3.1 percent, to $6.1975 a bushel. The grain has tumbled 21 percent since the end of May on speculation that farmers in the U.S. planted more than originally expected.
Wheat stockpiles on June 1 may have totaled 187.7 million tons, unchanged from last month’s estimate, according to the survey. The USDA last month pegged world inventories at 187.1 million tons.
Milling wheat for November delivery traded on NYSE Liffe in Paris dropped 5 euros, or 2.6 percent, to 185.75 euros ($258.54) a ton.
November-delivery soybeans fell for the first time in seven sessions in Chicago, sliding 8.25 cents, or 0.6 percent, to $13.3875 a bushel. The oilseed has retreated 5.1 percent since the end of March.
To contact the reporters on this story： Tony C. Dreibus in London at tdreibus@bloomberg.net.
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Claudia Carpenter at ccarpenter@bloomberg.net.
