Corn Futures Rise as Mixed Yield Prospects Confound Traders
Chicago corn futures rose on Thursday as an industry field tour highlighted mixed yield prospects across the US Midwest. The most-active corn contract on the Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT) gained 0.4% to $5.00 a bushel by 0221 GMT.
The USDA cut its corn and soybean yield forecasts last week, which has traders closely watching reports from the Pro Farmer field tour. Corn yield potential and soybean pod counts across western Iowa are down from last year but remain near or above three-year averages, according to Pro Farmer scouts.
On the third day of a four-day, seven-state event, Pro Farmer scouts projected the average corn yield for Illinois at 184.19 bushels per acre, below the 2025 crop tour average of 199.57 bpa and the tour's three-year average of 199.15.