Highlights – Key Market Insights
- Corn firmed modestly into week’s end, with December up roughly a dime week-over-week, as traders weighed variable yields and firming spreads. ADM Investor Services
- Soybeans edged higher on the week as crush margins improved and processors sweetened bids to coax farmer movement. ADM Investor Services
- Wheat stayed rangebound amid ample global supply signals and currency headwinds, keeping U.S. offers competitive but constrained. ADM Investor Services
- Crude oil continued its downward trend last week, easing drying and hauling cost pressure if weakness persists. The Wall Street Journal
- Retail diesel held near recent averages, offering budget stability heading deeper into harvest. U.S. Energy Information Administration
Commodity Spotlights
🌽 Corn
- Prices ended slightly higher on the week, the fourth straight weekly gain, with December carving out resistance near $4.31¼. ADM Investor Services
- Spreads softened after midweek strength, hinting at ample nearby availability even as harvest advances. ADM Investor Services
- Analysts flagged yield variability tied to disease pressure, adding uncertainty to final production. ADM Investor Services
- Basis firmed in select Midwestern river and processor locations, improving bids where logistics allow. Brownfield Ag News
🌱 Soybeans
- Futures posted a small weekly gain, supported by stronger crush margins and steadier spreads. ADM Investor Services
- Processors in Illinois and beyond raised basis and offered flexible delivery/pricing, aiming to pull bushels. Reuters
- Basis improved in parts of the Midwest, particularly along the Mississippi corridor, aiding cash movement. Brownfield Ag News
- With official data limited, near-term price cues leaned on private forecasts and field reports. Reuters
🌾 Wheat
- Chicago and KC wheat traded mixed (±1–3¢) through Friday, with some firming last week, but remaining near the lower end of recent ranges. ADM Investor Services
- Global updates (EU/Australia/Argentina) reinforced ample export competition, tempering upside for U.S. sales. Economic Research Service
- Russia trimmed its export tax to spur shipments, another headwind for U.S. price recovery. ADM Investor Services
- SRW volumes stayed active, but overall sentiment was cautious into the new week. AP News
🍚 Rice
- USDA AMS weekly rice summary indicated steady tone in key by-products and California milled classes, with regional variances. AMS
- Arkansas updates highlighted milling quality as a chief concern, even as harvest disruptions from late-September rains were limited. Arkansas Extension Service
- ERS maintained a firmer 2025/26 U.S. production outlook, with balance-sheet tweaks that keep attention on basis and quality into fall. Economic Research Service
Fuel & Input Cost Watch
- WTI fell to the lowest level since early 2021 late week, easing field-fuel cost risk if softness persists. The Wall Street Journal
- National retail diesel hovered near recent levels in the latest EIA update, aiding harvest budgeting. U.S. Energy Information Administration
- DAP/anhydrous prices were mixed to higher in early October retailer surveys, keeping phosphorus costs on the radar. DTN PF
- EIA’s October outlook flagged steady U.S. output and softer oil price expectations into 2026, a tempered backdrop for farm energy spend. Midland Reporter-Telegram
Risk Management Quick Take
Protect the floor, work the basis. Consider minimum-price contracts or modest put spreads to defend revenue while keeping upside if local basis continues to firm, and scale-in small diesel/fertilizer pre-buys where storage and cash flow allow.