CHICAGO, April 5 (Reuters) - The U.S. Agriculture Department likely rated the U.S. winter wheat crop as 53% good to excellent, according to an average of estimates given by nine analysts in a Reuters survey ahead of a government report on Monday.
Dry conditions in some key growing areas of the U.S. Plains pressured the wheat crop during the past few months, analysts said.
USDA will release its first crop progress and conditions report of 2021 at 3 p.m. CDT (2000 GMT) on Monday afternoon.
Before the crop went into dormancy, USDA had rated winter wheat as 46% good to excellent. A year ago, the winter wheat crop was rated 62% good to excellent.
Trade estimates for good-to-excellent ratings for wheat ranged from 43% to 57%.
Analysts also were expecting that corn planting was 3% complete and spring wheat planting was 2% complete.
USDA said it had polled farmers about planting but would not publish the data unless enough progress had been made in the fields. In 2020, the government’s first report on corn and spring wheat planting was released on April 13. (Reporting by Mark Weinraub; Editing by Dan Grebler)
