Corn closed Friday with gains of about 2 cents a bushel. For the week corn lost about 2 cents. The first corn crop condition ratings of the year were released by the USDA on Tuesday afternoon. Last year the first ratings were at 72 percent good to excellent. This year it surprised traders with a rating of 65 percent good to excellent. Even though traders expected higher ratings, farmers are wondering how they can be that high given how poor the ratings are in Illinois, Indiana and Missouri. With better weather this last week you would expect the rating to improve. In traders' minds in a couple weeks we will have this year's crop rated as high as last year's when we all know it is not as good as last year!

Beans closed out the week Friday with gains of 6-9 cents. Export sales were very good again last week at 22.4 million bushels of old crop. That puts our year to date export sales at 2.147 billion bushels sold. The USDA has our export sales projected for the year at 2.050 billion bushels. The point is we are well above the USDA export projection for the year! Plus the marketing year ends on September 30. Brazil did have a very good bean crop this year and I keep hearing traders say Brazil is more competitive because their currency has dropped, making their beans cheaper to world buyers. So, why do buyers keep coming to the United States? Maybe with all the turmoil in Brazil they do not think they are reliable?

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