Spot corn basis bids were steady to firm around the US Midwest on Friday while soybean basis was mostly steady amid light, scattered farmer selling of both commodities following a rally in futures, dealers said. The overall pace of sales was light, and soybean sales were more active than corn sales, dealers said.
Cash soybean prices in several areas rose above $10 a bushel, a selling target for some producers. But cash corn failed to rise to the $4-a-bushel target price cited by many farmers so sales were minimal. Some elevators and processors firmed their corn bids to encourage more farmer selling. But soybean basis held mostly steady, with a moderate volume of sales this week helping keep a lid on basis values.
An Illinois river elevator raised corn basis by 5 cents a bushel and soy basis by 6 cents despite the futures rally. A dealer there said the move was partly due to stronger demand for physical supplies amid concern that drought in Argentina would cut output and drive prices even higher. Frigid weather and dangerous wind chills around the region discouraged grain movement for a third consecutive day.
Analytical firm Informa Economics estimated US corn plantings for 2009 at 82.7 million acres and soybeans at 80.8 million, trade sources said on Friday. Barge freight was steady to weak on Friday. The Coast Guard said barge traffic was limited to one way on a 10-mile stretch on the Illinois River near Peoria Lake but there were no forecasts for the river to freeze up.
Spot barge bids held steady at 550 percent of tariff on the Illinois River and 400 percent on the lower Ohio River. On the Mississippi River at St. Louis, spot barge bids fell to 475 percent of tariff, down 25 points from Thursday.
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