Spot basis bids for corn and soyabeans were mostly steady around the interior US Midwest on Wednesday amid slow country movement, grain dealers said. Cash bids for corn did fall along rivers as CIF values have declined through the week.
Farmer selling was low, despite a futures market rally that pushed cash prices for soyabeans nearly 10 cents per bushel higher and corn prices up by more than 3 cents a bushel. But prices were still well below levels reached earlier this winter, so farmers were not interested in unloading any of the grain they have been holding in storage since harvest.
"They are kind of in wait-and-see mode," a northern Ohio dealer said. "They are not even calling in. Maybe they would call in if we go back up to the highs." Barge freight was steady to weaker along Midwest rivers. Shipping costs are expected to fall in the coming weeks as stretches of the upper Mississippi River open for traffic after being shut for the winter. Barges traded in a range between 285 percent and 290 percent of tariff on the Illinois River on Wednesday, compared with 290 percent of tariff on Tuesday.