In the week ending October 19, soybean export sales reported by the Department of Agriculture surpassed analyst predictions and achieved a marketing-year high. According to the USDA’s weekly export sales report, soybean sales totaled 1.38 million metric tons for delivery in the 2023/24 marketing year. Although this represents only a 1% increase from the previous week, it sets a new record for the 2023/24 period.
The sales figures for soybeans also align with the higher end of estimates provided by analysts surveyed by The Wall Street Journal. Analysts anticipated exports to range between 700,000 tons and 1.5 million tons. Notably, China emerged as the leading buyer, purchasing 1.17 million tons of soybeans.
Corn sales also surpassed expectations, totaling 1.35 million tons for the 2023/24 period, marking a 53% increase from the previous week’s sales. Analysts had initially predicted sales between 600,000 tons and 1.4 million tons.
Conversely, wheat sales experienced a decline. The total sales amounted to 363,700 tons, down 43% from the previous week and falling on the lower end of analyst forecasts.
In pre-market trading on Thursday, grain futures on the CBOT show a positive trend. The most-active corn futures are up 0.2%, soybeans are up 0.4%, and wheat is up 1%.
For related data, please search “U.S. Export Sales: Weekly Sales Totals” in Dow Jones NewsPlus.
