Mark's Market Talk for August 31, 2026

Last week brought us higher markets once again, with December corn 28 cents higher and November beans 48 cents higher. The price leader for the week was December Chicago wheat, which rocketed 85 cents higher. The wheat market has been driven over the past two weeks by the war between Russia and Ukraine. Both sides continue bombing each other’s ports, making it almost impossible to ship grain out. For wheat, there is not a shortage of product. The problem is that it simply cannot move right now. However, these countries are becoming experts at finding alternate ways to ship grain. This conflict was probably the biggest price pusher in the markets last week.

The debate over corn yields continues as we wait for some actual yield data. We should start seeing some early results from the southern part of the Corn Belt this week. Corn export sales have slowed recently as Argentina has been harvesting corn and pushing it out the door. The U.S. will be back in the driver’s seat for corn supply shortly as the new crop starts flowing in. Ethanol demand remains steady. We still need to get E15 approved for year-round sales. It is 15 cents per gallon cheaper than E10 when you can find it. Now would be a great time to expand the availability of E15, as consumers seem more willing to use it to save money. Let’s get them going on it.

The strength in the bean market is hard to understand. Yield projections continue to run strong, the U.S. carryout is healthy, and world supplies are more than adequate. Yet traders continue to love owning beans. They have pushed their long positions in both corn and beans to the high side. China bought more beans last week, and they are expected to continue buying right up to the late September meeting between Trump and Xi. Tariff talk with China has been very quiet, and people in the know think it will remain that way because both countries need each other. Meanwhile, we seem to have a large disagreement with Canada over trade. Hopefully, this can be solved before major tariffs kick in later this week.

The new crop price increases are telling us to get some sales on the books. With the yield prospects we have in our area, you should be able to lock in some profit right now, and that has been hard to do for quite a while.