Corn Futures Rise to Life-of-Contract High on Chinese Sale

Grain and feed markets rallied on Friday as export sales announcements and concerns about harvest delays in Brazil buoyed markets. The main focus was on the United States Department of Agriculture’s (USDA’s) announcement of the sale of 2.1 million tonnes of U.S. corn to Chinese buyers for delivery in 2020/21. It was the largest sale of U.S. corn to Chinese buyers ever and the second-largest single sale of U.S. corn to any destination, behind only a sale of more than 3.7 million tonnes to the Soviet Union in 1991. The sale all but assures USDA will need to raise its forecast of 2020/21 U.S. corn exports in its next supply and demand projection, scheduled for release on February 9. In January, USDA cut its forecast by 100 million bushels to 2.55 billion. The Jacobsen expects U.S. shipments to total 2.65 billion bushels but will likely raise its…