Corn Futures Drop as Funds Exit Longs — Daily Grain Highlights

By Kirk Maltais

-- Corn for December delivery fell 1.1% to $5.11 a bushel on the Chicago Board of Trade Friday, as fund traders exited from a near-record long position in corn following Wednesday's USDA stocks report.

-- Soybeans for November delivery fell 0.6% to $12.93 a bushel.

-- Wheat for December delivery were virtually unchanged at $6.96 3/4 a bushel.

HIGHLIGHTS

Paring Down Longs: Corn futures led row crop futures lower as many fund traders opted to close long positions that they hold in corn. Last Friday's Commitment of Traders report from the CFTC showed a net long position among managed money traders that's almost 415,000 contracts. This week's update may show sizable selling among these traders. "[Corn is] down on more long liquidation, a touch of harvest pressure, and forecasts for perfect harvest weather starting next week to last for two weeks," said Charlie Sernatinger of Marex in a note.

Next Look: Next week's monthly WASDE report from the USDA may show higher yields for U.S. soybeans, said StoneX in its latest crop estimates. The firm said that it projects soybean yields at 54.1 bushels an acre, with production at 4.65 billion bushels. Both of these estimates would be above last month's USDA projections, and record-highs for U.S. soybeans. StoneX also adjusted its corn yield forecast to 182.1 bpa, down from the firm's previous forecast of 182.9 bpa but well above the 178.5 bpa the USDA projected last month. StoneX projects corn production at 16.12 billion bushels, which would be the second-largest crop in U.S. history.

INSIGHT

Lackluster Demand: Recent USDA data has grain traders viewing demand for soybeans from crushers - which has been a source of excitement for the market this year - as turning lackluster. In its monthly crushings report, the USDA said 6.29 million tons of soybeans were crushed to make soybean oil through the month of August, which is down nearly 6% from the prior month. Crushing and oil production remains up from the same time last year, but futures appear to be reacting more to the lower month-over-month figures.

World Cereal Prices Rise: World food prices rose in September, as transportation disruptions and weather concerns limited supplies and lifted prices for several crop-based commodities, the United Nations' Food and Agriculture Organization said. The FAO's food price index--which tracks a basket of widely traded food commodities--averaged 136 points last month, up 1.5% from its August level and 5.8% higher than a year prior. Wheat prices climbed to their highest level since August 2023, driven by trade disruptions in the Black Sea region and dry weather in parts of North America. Maize prices also hit a more than three-year high, supported by a tightening supply outlook following lower-than-expected yields in the U.S. and reduced export availability in Brazil.

AHEAD

-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.

-The EIA will release its Weekly Petroleum Status Update report at 10:30 a.m. ET Wednesday.

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

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

October 02, 2026 15:08 ET (19:08 GMT)