By Kirk Maltais
--Wheat for July delivery fell 0.6% to $6.74 3/4 a bushel on the Chicago Board of Trade on Wednesday, with futures pulling back from the sharp rise it experienced after the USDA's WASDE report showed its smallest crop since 1972.
--Soybeans for July delivery were virtually unchanged at $12.27 1/4 a bushel.
--Corn for July delivery rose 0.1% to $4.80 1/2 a bushel.
HIGHLIGHTS
Spaced Out: CBOT wheat futures fell after the contract posted a limit-up close of 7.1% Tuesday, following the USDA marking down U.S. wheat production to its lowest in 54 years. At an estimated total production of 1.56 billion bushels in 2026, wheat output hasn't been this low since 1972. A drought-laden winter wheat crop is the main reason, as is geopolitical issues, Saxo Bank's Ole Hansen said in a note. "Farmers have not only faced poor growing conditions, but also sharply higher operating costs linked to the ongoing conflict between the United States and Iran."
Hitting the Ground: CBOT grain futures were mixed in premarket with traders watching for headlines out of Beijing, where President Trump and China's President Xi will begin their summit. Expectations heading into the meeting include an extension of the tariff truce between the two countries, U.S. access to rare earth minerals, and purchase agreements for goods including U.S. agricultural exports, Jefferies said in a note.
INSIGHT
Laying Low: Analysts surveyed by The Wall Street Journal are expecting soybean export sales may find another marketing-year low when the USDA reports Thursday morning. Analysts forecast sales to land anywhere from 135,000 metric tons to 600,000 metric tons for the week ended May 7. If sales land on the low-end of this range, then it could potentially be a new marketing-year low, coming after sales were logged at 141,900 tons for 2025/26 in last week's report.
Eating the Leftovers: In its weekly report, the EIA said ethanol inventories for the week-ended May 8 totaled 24.87 million barrels, down 1.15 million barrels from the prior week. That is a bigger decrease than the 25.3 million barrels to 26.2 million barrels expected by analysts. The EIA pegged average ethanol production at 1.082 million barrels a day, exceeding analyst estimates of 1.025 million barrels to 1.05 million barrels. Legislators in the House of Representatives today are scheduled to vote on a new bill that would allow E15, or gasoline containing 15% ethanol, to be sold year-round nationwide.
Participation Trophy: The USDA's National Agricultural Statistics Service is asking U.S. farmers for their participation in its June Agricultural Survey, from which data and forecasts for reports including its quarterly Grain Stocks report and monthly WASDE report are derived. NASS said it is contacting and urging more than 90,000 producers from across the country to respond. "When producers take part, they help ensure that the nation's agricultural reporting remains accurate, transparent, and free from speculation," NASS administrator Joseph Parsons said.
AHEAD
--The USDA will release its weekly export sales report at 8:30 a.m. ET Thursday.
--The CFTC will release its weekly Commitment of Traders report at 3:30 p.m. ET Friday.
--The USDA will release its weekly Grain Export Inspections report at 11 a.m. ET Monday.
--The USDA will release its weekly Crop Progress report at 4 p.m. ET Monday.
Write to Kirk Maltais at kirk.maltais@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
05-13-26 1527ET
