Corn spot basis bids were steady to lower at US rail terminals and ethanol plants on Friday as bearish buyers delayed purchases even as futures posted their worst weekly decline in 21 months. Bids shed as much as 5 cents per bushel at a terminal in Fort Worth, Texas, with cattle producers in the area were uninterested in buying rail cars of the grain, a trader there said.
Declines in the corn basis were capped after farmers put off any old-crop sales due to the lowest futures since June. Supplies are the smallest in nine years and growers are holding tight to what remains from last year's harvest in the hopes prices rebound. Soyabean spot basis bids were firm at an Iowa elevator and steady elsewhere, supported by tight supplies and slow farmer sales.
Soils were still too cold for farmers in most of the US Midwest to start planting corn but some growers may plant this weekend in portions of the central and southern grain belt before showers arrive from Sunday to Thursday. The approaching planting season is likely to keep country offerings at a minimum, underpinning bids even as reduced demand, especially for export, limits gains in the basis.