By Kirk Maltais
--Corn for January delivery fell 0.5%, to $6.50 1/2 a bushel, on the Chicago Board of Trade on Wednesday, with short-covering by fund traders slowing down ahead of the decision by the Federal Reserve to raise interest rates by 50 basis points.
--Wheat for March delivery fell 0.2% to $7.49 1/4 a bushel.
--Soybeans for January delivery rose 0.2% to $14.82 1/4 a bushel.
HIGHLIGHTS
Applying the Brakes: Corn futures led row crops lower for most of the day, with the complex as a whole seeing volumes stay relatively light until the Federal Reserve's decision on interest rates was made public late in the trading session. "Corn was lower all day on few fresh inputs and short covering drying up," said Charlie Sernatinger of Marex in a note. "Corn is possibly forming a consolidation pattern and has few drivers in the current environment. The yellow grain could just keep on consolidating right through the holidays."
Back to Work: The Port of Odesa has resumed operation following Russian attacks that knocked the port offline over the weekend, according to media reports from the area. While shipments are resuming at a slower pace than they were, the return of Ukrainian shipping vessels to seas also supported a decline in wheat and corn futures on the CBOT - with delays in reopening the port seen as supportive for higher grain futures by traders.
Demand Side: Dryness in South America helped support soybean futures in trading, as did expectations for improved demand for U.S. soybeans. Grain traders surveyed by The Wall Street Journal are forecasting that export sales of soybeans for the week ended December 8 are likely higher than the previous week. Traders are forecasting sales to land anywhere from 1.75 million metric tons to 2.2 million tons, versus 1.75 million tons reported last week. The USDA reported a series of flash sales of U.S. soybeans last week, most of which were destined for China.
INSIGHTS
Material Buildup: Inventories of ethanol in the U.S. surged in the past week, surpassing analyst expectations and building to a level last seen in April. In its latest weekly report, the U.S. Energy Information Administration said ethanol stocks totaled 24.41 million barrels for the week ended December 9. That's a jump of over 1 million barrels from last week, and the highest stocks have been since April 8, when they totaled 24.8 million barrels. Analysts surveyed by Dow Jones this week forecast inventories to land anywhere from 23 million barrels to 23.86 million barrels.
Record Values: The value of farmland keeps rising, with the average value of an acre of Iowa farmland now seen at $11,411 per acre, according to Iowa State University - up 17% from last year and the highest level since the university started its assessment in 1941. When adjusted for inflation, the average value for 2022 remains the highest ever record, surpassing a record set in 2013. Farmland prices were supported mostly by higher commodity prices, according to Iowa State, while interest rate hikes throughout the year eventually served to pump the brakes on the runaway market. Last year, Iowa State reported that the average value for an acre of farmland had jumped 29%.
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 grains export inspections report at 11 a.m. ET Monday.
Write to Kirk Maltais at kirk.maltais@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
12-14-22 1523ET
