October 2, 2009

US wheat stocks as of September 1, the start of the second quarter of the 2009-10 crop year, was estimated at 2.21 billion bushels, up 19 percent or more than 357 million bushels from the same date a year ago, according to the National Agricultural Statistics Service of the USDA.

On-farm stocks were estimated at 840 million bushels, up 32 percent from 635.7 million bushels as the September 1, 2008, farm inventory. September 1 off-farm stocks were estimated at 1.38 billion bushels, up 12 percent from 1.2 billion bushels a year earlier.

The USDA said the indicated wheat disappearance in June-August 2009 was 661 million bushels, down 30 percent from the same period in 2008.

Corn stocks were estimated at 1.67 billion bushels, up three percent from 1.62 billion bushels a year ago. June-August 2009 disappearance was estimated at 2.59 billion bushels compared with 2.4 billion bushels a year earlier.

Soy stocks were estimated at 138.2 million bushels, down 33 percent from more than 205 million bushels a year earlier. The USDA estimated June-August soy disappearance at 458 million bushels, down three percent from the same period in 2008.

Preliminary national average price paid to farmers for all wheat in September was US$4.30 per bushel, down from US$4.483 in August and down from US$7.43 in the same month a year ago, the USDA said.

The average price paid for winter wheat in September was US$4.03 a bushel, down from US$4.67 in August and down from US$6.99 in September 2008.

Spring wheat averaged US$4.72 a bushel in September, down from US$5.52 in August and down from US$7.76 in September 2008.

The average price received for corn in September was US$3.32 a bushel, down from US$3.33 in August and down from US$5.01 in September 2008.

Farmers received an average of US$5.16 a cwt for grain sorghum in September, down from US$5.37 in August and down from US$7.99 in September 2008.

The national average price paid to farmers for soy was US$9.85 a bushel, down from US$10.80 in August and in September 2008.