CBOT September soyabeans rose as high as $17.80¾ per bushel, beating a previous record reached on July 20.
The worst drought since the 1950s has lowered expectations for this year’s US soyabean and corn crops, sending prices of agricultural commodities soaring, according to a report in the Financial Times. The government estimated that 38% of soyabean fields were in poor to very-poor condition this week.
Weather forecasts also pointed to worsening conditions for soyabeans, reported the FT, with temperatures set to rise above 32C in key growing states such as Iowa and Illinois and the remnants of hurricane Isaac expected to dump a lot of rain in Missouri late on Friday.
The US Drought Monitor, a government service, reported that 82% of the Midwest region was in drought, slightly more than last week. While rains moistened some spots in the past week, “improvements were made, but it should be noted that many of the row crops will not benefit from these rains and pastures have had minimal improvement so far,” the service said.
The USDA expects the US soyabean crop to be 12% smaller than last year and says the average field will yield the least beans per acre since 2003. Brazil is forecast to surpass the US as the world’s leading soyabean producer this year.
