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Corn, soybean harvest pace quickens

The National Agricultural Statistics Service predicts that soybean production in Kentucky will be up 10 percent this year over last year.

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Fieldwork for the week included cutting hay, chopping silage, harvesting seed corn, corn for grain and soybeans. The MYA prices in recent years for corn were $4.46/Bu.in 2013-14, $6.89/Bu.in 2012-13, $6.22/Bu.in 2011-12, and $5.18/Bu.in 2010-11.

That’s behind last year’s six percent and the average 16 percent.

About a third of the grain sorghum crop has been harvested and the soybean harvest is just starting. Wheat futures traded about 5¢ to 6¢ a bushel higher after the report was released, with added support from a lower-than-expected USDA September 1 wheat stocks estimate. Soybean stocks stored on farms are 49.7 million bushels, up 133% from a year ago.

“Ths report is friendly to the wheat market, but it’s hard to say it is bullish”, said Randy Martinson, commodity broker and manager of Progressive Ag Marketing, in Fargo, N.D. Martinson was the commentator on an MGEX post-report press conference.

December milling wheat, the benchmark on the Paris-based Euronext market, settled up 0.75 euros or 0.4 percent at 174.50 euros a tonne. Corn is also shaping up well, with numerous fields reaching maturity, and Overgaard said there was potential to see record yields for both crops. Total wheat output will likely be pegged at 2.139 billion bushels, up slightly from last month’s forecast of 2.136 billion, according to analysts surveyed by The Wall Street Journal. Beef demand typically picks up in mid-October as shoppers prepare more meals indoors and supermarkets stock up on product to feature in early November. Prices were down going into the report.

Soybeans are the largest crop in Kentucky in terms of acreage. Cattle slaughter started the week out at 222,000 head, compared to 226,000 head last week and 232,000 head this time past year. That means the market will focus more directly on export sales, who gets the business, and at what price.

Ninety-two percent of soybeans were turning color or beyond, while 72 percent of soybeans were dropping leaves, four days ahead of 2014, and two days ahead of normal.

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Cotton futures began the week higher Monday despite Chinese stocks closing lower, perhaps on month-end positioning. On-farm stocks are estimated at 647 million bushels, down 9 percent from last September.

Harvest Progress Seen Near Average