Imports and Exports

Due to the holiday season, export sales were delayed and the significant number of cancellations were concerning, says Jamie Wasemiller of the Gulke Group.

The Dec. 12 WASDE report helped corn by raising ethanol usage by 50 million bushel, which reduced ending stocks—good news according to Jerry Gulke as he spoke to Host Pam Fretwell on Farm Journal Radio.

Zambia, the only southern African country to produce a corn surplus last year, may run out of storage space if a ban on exporting the grain isn’t lifted, according to local traders.

The Grain Millers Association of Zimbabwe, which represents the country’s major milling companies, said it wants the government to impose a 40 percent of tariffs on imports of corn and corn meal because its struggling to compete with cheaper South African corn grown from genetically modified seeds.

Kenya has approved the import of 5 million bags, or 450,000 metric tons, of yellow corn from Ukraine as a drought slashes its own output of the grain.

Country says it has enough corn to last until next year.

Tariffs could make Argentine kernels cheaper than American.

So far, favorable South American weather forecasts support estimates of increased crop production in Brazil and Argentina. As a result, some analysts are betting on bigger U.S. ending stocks.

Brazil ‘s government grain agency CONAB raised its estimates Tuesday for record bumper crops of soybeans and grains.

Lack of rain in forecast may hurt supply.