U.S. corn-ending stocks moved higher for 2022/23 on the reduced export. Corn imports for 2022/23 were lowered to 25 million bushels due to a slow pace and weakening export potential. Ending stocks for the current marketing year increased to 1.452 billion bushels. If realized, the stocks-to-use ratio is estimated at 10.6 percent.
Prices received by farmers for the 2022/23 crop continue at levels seen since the start of the calendar year. In its latest Agricultural Prices report, the USDA’s National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) reported that the national average price received for corn in April came in at $6.70 per bushel (see figure 2). Since the marketing year high price of $7.09 per bushel posted last September, corn prices fell through the harvest window and have leveled out as we proceed into the last quarter of the marketing year. Most U.S. corn is historically marketed during the first half of the marketing year. With limited remaining corn supplies in the later part of the marketing year, the impact of recent price movements is minimal and the season-average farm price for corn remains estimated at $6.60 per bushel.
Ending stocks in 2023/24 are projected to total 2.257 billion bushels - a 35-millio nbushel increase from the May WASDE report’s projection. A larger supply (based on higher beginning stocks) provides the basis for the increase, as production and demand projections remain unchanged. If realized, this increase would result in a stocks-to-use ratio of 15.6 percent, a level not seen since the 2018/19 marketing year. The season average farm price for 2023/24 remains projected to be $4.80 per bushel.
