Corn Prices Surge on Lower Yields and Increased Exports

Corn futures are rallying after the USDA's Crop Production and WASDE reports revealed lower-than-expected yields. The national average Cash Corn price has increased by 13 cents to $4.20 3/4, with nearby contracts up by 12 to 13 cents.

The latest data from NASS showed a yield of 180.7 bushels per acre (bpa), with planted acreage raised by 1.4 million acres to 96.7 million acres and harvested acres up 1.2 million to 88.6 million acres. Production was estimated at 16.013 billion bushels, surpassing the July WASDE number by 13 million bushels and nearly 80 million bushels above estimates.

According to WASDE data, ending stocks for 2025/26 were down 75 million bushels from last month due to increased exports of 1.945 billion bushels. New crop stocks were pegged at 1.653 billion bushels due to the lower carryover and higher new crop export potential.

World ending stocks were reduced by 0.6 million metric tons for the new crop estimates, standing at 274.66 million metric tons. Brazil's production for 2025/26 was increased by 2 million metric tons to 140 million metric tons.