May 12, 2022

USDA says wheat ratings improve, but corn seeding lags

The US Department of Agriculture (USDA) rated 29% of the country's winter wheat crop in good to excellent condition, up 2 percentage points from the week prior and a large improvement compared to what most analysts had predicted, but remains among the lowest ratings on record for this time of year, Reuters reported.

The government anticipated to rank 28% of the crop as good to exceptional, according to 14 analysts polled by Reuters, with forecasts ranging from 26% to 32%.

Despite the increase, USDA statistics from the late 1980s show that good-to-excellent ratings for winter wheat in the 18th week of the calendar year have only dropped below 30% twice, at 26% in 1996 and 20% in 1989.

The importance of the US crop's potential has been amplified by tight world wheat supplies and Russia's invasion of Ukraine, both significant wheat exporters. According to a second government assessment, nearly 69% of US winter wheat was grown in drought-stricken areas as of May 3.

Excessive rains in the Midwest have disrupted corn and soybean planting. According to the USDA, the maize crop in the United States was 22% seeded as of Sunday, significantly behind the average analyst projection of 25% and well behind the five-year average of 50%.

The average expert forecast for soybean planting in the United States was 16%, while the five-year average was 24%.

The top two maize and soybean producers, Iowa and Illinois, received 1.8 and 1.7 days appropriate for fieldwork last week, according to the USDA.

The USDA said that the spring wheat crop in the United States was 27% planted, falling short of expert estimates of 28% and the five-year average of 47%.

-      Reuters