Country News
Argentina: The corn export lineup was 1.4 MMT for May/June loadings despite facing some delays. (AgriCensus)
Brazil: Agrural says that the corn harvest is gaining pace despite the rains as June exports hit a record. Exporters are eyeing the truck freight situation as July congestion is anticipated and rates are rising. (AgriCensus)
China: Although the fall army worm has been found in the third largest corn producing province of Shandong, the government claims there are not any damaged crops. The Ministry of Agriculture admits that the damaging pest is now in 19 provinces covering 333,000 hectares of crops and is expected to spread further. The next two months are critical and Wang Zhenying of the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences expects the armyworm to spread to the two top corn producing provinces, Heilongjiang and Jilin.
Meanwhile, Hebei Province has issued a heat warning as temperatures soared to 40 Celsius (104 Fahrenheit) and concerns are heightened about damage to the corn crop. And the corn weekly auction remains slow as it dropped to a six-week low. (Reuters, AgriCensus)
EU: Record summer temperatures are expected to trim the grain harvest but not dent it severely like last summer’s drought. Europe’s Monitoring Agricultural Resources (MARS) report made a downward revision in the barley crop, mostly due to Spain, but raised the corn production estimate bvy 1.6 percent. (Reuters, MARS)
South Korea: KFA was tempted on corn due to the falling prices but passed on tendering. (AgriCensus)
Zimbabwe: The government has banned the sale of corn to anyone but the state Grain Marketing Board. The goal is to keep prices lower on the drought reduced staple crop. Non-government buyers could face two years of jail. (Reuters)