By Kirk Maltais


--Wheat for December delivery fell 1.9% to $6.25 1/4 a bushel on the Chicago Board of Trade on Friday as traders attempting to get their positions in order in the event of new developments in a Black Sea export corridor or Russian aggression over the weekend.

--Corn for December delivery fell 0.3% to $4.86 a bushel.

--Soybeans for November delivery rose 1.1% to $13.87 a bushel.


HIGHLIGHTS


Abundance of Caution: Corn and wheat futures succumbed to pressure late in the trading session. "Corn and wheat are positioning ahead of the weekend in case supportive headlines emerge from the Black Sea Region over the next couple of days when the markets are closed," Arlan Suderman of StoneX said in a note. Wheat futures have been moving in reaction to news of strikes on Ukrainian port and grain infrastructure, with the death of Wagner Group's Yevgeny Prigozhin injecting more volatility into trading.

Risk Factors: Indications of more soybean export demand being directed toward the U.S. had futures elevated throughout the day, as did claims that current weather will only hurt final U.S. soybean production. "Beans will need more moisture to realize potential and we're not seeing it in the forecasts," Charlie Sernatinger of Marex said in a note. In the morning, the USDA reported a new flash sale of soybean exports to China for 121,000 metric tons delivered in the 2023/24 marketing year.

Variable Picture: Mixed results came out of the last day of Pro Farmer's Midwest Crop Tour, with crop scouts finding that northern Iowa yields were lower than this time last year, as were southern Minnesota yields. This carried prices for much of the day.


INSIGHT


Downward Slide: Following a week of surveying farmer's fields throughout the Corn Belt, Pro Farmer expects crop output to fall below current government estimates. At the conclusion of the group's Midwest Crop Tour this week, national corn production is projected at 14.96 billion bushels and soybean production at 4.11 billion bushels. Corn yields are expected at 172 bushels an acre, and soybean yields are forecast at 49.7 bushels an acre. Production figures are all below the most recent estimates issued by the Department of Agriculture, which is expected to impact trading next week.


AHEAD


--The USDA will release its weekly grains export inspections report at 11 a.m. ET Monday.

--The USDA will release its weekly crop progress report at 4 p.m. ET Monday.

--The EIA will release its weekly ethanol production and stocks report at 10:30 a.m. ET Wednesday.


Write to Kirk Maltais at kirk.maltais@wsj.com


(END) Dow Jones Newswires

08-25-23 1520ET