Grains were mostly lower led by soybeans which gave up 5 of its 20-cent advance from Monday. In outside markets, the US dollar surged 0.6% while crude oil was sharply lower to start the day.
On Monday, USDA reported that the US corn harvest was 24% complete while soybeans were 26% harvested. This was inline with expectations of 25% but slightly off of the 5-year average which is 27% for both commodities. Also on Monday after the close, FC Stone released survey results which show a US corn crop of 15.163 billion bushels on a yield of 175.2, and soybean production of 4.357 on a yield of 52.5. USDA’s latest forecast is 15.093 billion and 174.4 for corn while soybeans are pegged at 4,201 billion and 50.6.
Also on Monday USDA’s monthly report on oilseed crushings came in at 140.6 MB of soybeans were processed in August, just slightly below 141.0 MB . The range of analyst estimates was 140.0-141.9 MB.
Argentina will not reduce soy export taxes this year or in 2017 as previously announced and will instead reduce the tax by 0.5 percentage points per month from January 2018 to December 2019, President Mauricio Macri said on Monday. Shortly after taking office in December, Macri eliminated corn and wheat export taxes as part of his plan to stimulate the farm economy. He cut the export tax on soy, the country's main cash crop, from 35% to 30%, and the government had planned further cuts beginning this year.
The US dollar gained strength overnight as the British pound hit a 31-year low against the greenback. The sterling is suffering from a “horrible combination” of Brexit anxieties and a resurgent Dollar, prompting traders into waves of selling.
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