July 1, 2004

US Corn, Soybean Planted Acreage Higher In 2004

As nearly all U.S. farmers have completed corn and soybean planting this year, the U.S. Department of Agriculture said in a report released Wednesday that acreage for both commodities will be higher than in 2003.
 
The USDA estimated that U.S. farmers are planting about 81 million acres of land with corn and 74.8 million acres of soybeans in 2004. For corn, the planted acreage estimate would be a 3% increase over both 2003 as well as 2002. The soybean acreage estimate is a decline from forecasts made earlier this year, the USDA said, but would still be a record-breaking level and "a rebound from the three-year decline."
 
For corn, the USDA attributed the increases primarily to good planting conditions.
 
"Planting conditions during April and May across much of the corn belt were near ideal," the USDA said in its acreage report. "Above-normal temperatures and light rainfall allowed (corn) planting to progress well ahead of the normal pace. Similar conditions were experienced in the northern and central Great Plains."
 
Heavy rains slowed corn belt planting in mid-May, the USDA said. But it added that at the time the survey was completed for this June report, 98% of the corn and 87% of the soybeans that will be planted this year were already in the field.
 
Illinois and Indiana were the two states that saw the biggest decline in soybean acreage planted this year, but large increases were also registered in states such as North Dakota, Arkansas, Kansas, Louisiana and Mississippi. The USDA said, "North Dakota farmers planted an additional 550,000 acres for a state record-high of 3.7 million acres."
 
STOCKS
 
The USDA, in its quarterly grain stocks report also released Monday, estimated U.S. corn stocks in all positions at 2.97 billion bushels as of June 1, down only slightly from corn stocks at the same time a year ago, according to the report.
 
For soybeans, the USDA estimated stocks in all positions at 410 million bushels, a 32% decrease from this time last year. The USDA said in its grain stocks report, also released Wednesday, "This is the lowest June 1 stocks level since 1977."
 

Source: USDA