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Grain and oilseed markets have moved higher as a result of Thursday's USDA Planting Intentions and Stocks Report.

 

US farmers intend on planting 92.2 million acres of corn, 76.6 million acres of soybeans, and 58 million acres of wheat. The corn and wheat acreage estimates were slightly higher than what traders expected, while the soybean number was low.

 

Chuck Penner, President of Leftfield Commodity Research, says he doesn't think the numbers were hugely different than expected, but in the kind of market situation that we have right now, it doesn't take much to push markets.

 

Despite a 5% increase in corn acres, Penner points out the USDA is forecasting a drop in ending stocks, saying quarterly stocks were below what the expectation was, meaning that usage was higher than what traders and analysts expected, and stocks will be really tight toward the end of the year.