Corn Futures Rally Amid Lower Yields and Changing Ethanol Trends

Corn futures surged on Wednesday, closing up 8 to 10 cents in most front months. The CmdtyView national average Cash Corn price also rose, increasing by a dime to $4.45 1/2.

The ProFarmer Crop Tour released its findings, showing that Nebraska corn yields averaged 163.61 bushels per acre, down 8.85% from last year and 5.6% below the three-year average. Indiana yields came in at 183.54 bpa, a decline of 5.3% from a year ago and 2.1% below the three-year average.

Weekly EIA data revealed a decrease in ethanol production for the week ending August 14, down by 28,000 barrels per day to 1.089 million barrels. However, stocks increased by 323,000 barrels to 25.121 million barrels. Refiner inputs of ethanol rose by 11,000 bpd to 926,000 bpd.