September 2, 2026

Mid-Co Morning Comments:
 

• Grain markets are in the red this morning after opening higher overnight and scoring fresh highs in CZ26 ($5.49) and SX26 ($13.24). Fund length in corn was estimated at a record 482,000 contracts, or roughly 2.4 billion bushels, after yesterday’s close. Spreads are wider in both corn and soybeans, with SX/SF out to -15 ½ and CZ/CH a half-cent wider at -14 ¾. The market felt due for a correction, and some fund liquidation could keep pressure on grains unless another wave of speculative buying steps in.
• Russia launched strikes on the port of Odesa overnight, damaging shipping infrastructure along with homes and vehicles. Iran and the U.S. have also exchanged missile strikes over the past couple of days as tensions heat back up. President Trump said in a Truth Social post that the U.S. has “almost total control” of the Strait of Hormuz and that the Iranian economy is collapsing.
• Soybean processor basis was mostly weaker yesterday as some plants chipped away at the cash inverse. Cargill Kansas City, for example, dropped bids to +30X versus a recent posted bid of +100X. New-crop beans are starting to hit the pipeline, and those cash inverses should fade quickly, especially in the West. Sell any remaining premium values you can execute on while they are still available.
• Corn harvest is rolling in Missouri and southern Illinois and quickly approaching farther north. I drove from Bloomington to Galesburg yesterday and saw plenty of corn fields starting to turn, even in northern Illinois. Soybeans are still hanging onto their green, as August weather didn’t push them along nearly as quickly. Farmers in the Knox County, IL area believe corn yields could be 20–30 bpa below last year, while expectations for soybeans are much more optimistic, with some expecting record yields north of 80 bpa.