Corn Futures Market Sees Shift to Net-Long Positions Amid Crop Size Concerns

Market trends in corn futures are shifting, with noncommercial traders holding a net-long position of 535,801 contracts as of September 22. This is closing in on the all-time record of 547,677 contracts set in late January 2021.

The increase in net-long positions comes despite prices being stagnant ahead of the advancing US harvest. Traders were net-sellers of 6,583 contracts during this period.

Commercial corn traders, however, are still holding a net-short position of 474,811 contracts as of September 22. They did manage to increase their net-buying activity through the CFTC reporting period, purchasing 2,034 contracts.

The price spread between the December 2026 contract and the March 2027 contract has also been affected by crop size concerns. The December 2026 contract is priced 13 3/4 cents lower than the March 2027 contract, a spread that has firmed in seven of the past eight weeks.