Corn Exports Lead the Way

U.S. grain inspections for the week ending on February 19 were 2.0 million tonnes, which is the strongest weekly export number since last November. This brings the total exports to date to 37.7 million tonnes. The performance of the grain markets this year have been disappointing but the one bright spot has been the record corn exports this year. The positive news for the market is that export sales are not slowing down as we reach the half-way point of the crop year. Corn commitments to the end of week 24 (February 12, 2026) were 62.3 million tonnes which is the largest on record.

Unlike soybeans, corn is not reliant on one single market. The largest purchaser of U.S. corn is Mexico which has commitments for 19.2 million tonnes. Japan is the second largest customer of U.S. corn with commitments of 10.1 million tonnes. South Korea (5.9 million tonnes) and Colombia (4.9 million tonnes) are the third and fourth largest customers of U.S. corn. The diversity of corn exports is contributing the strength of the demand for U.S. corn.

The only fly in the ointment for U.S. corn demand is that the second largest exporter, Brazil is just planting the saphrina crop which will be harvested from May through July. The Brazilian crop is expected to reach 131 million tonnes this year, which is down five million tonnes from last year. Brazilian exports are expected to reach 43 million tonnes this year which is up by 1.5 million tonnes from last year. Larger exports from Brazil should result in slower U.S. corn demand in the early summer.

Source: producer.com