Corn futures ended the Tuesday trading session with contracts down 6 to 7 ¼ cents across most months. The national average Cash Corn price from cmdtyView was down 6 3/4 cents at $3.69 3/4 per bu. The average close for December corn futures, which indicates the fall crop insurance price, so far this month is $4.21. That is 45 cents below the February base price.

The weekly Crop Progress report indicated the US corn harvest at 47% complete as of October 13, 8 percentage points ahead of the 5-year average pace. Condition ratings were steady at 64% gd/ex, as the Brugler500 index was up 2 points on a 1% shift from poor to fair.

Export Inspections data showed just 430,323 MT (16.9 mbu) of corn shipments in the week of October 10, which is the lowest weekly total since last November. That was a drop of 54.61% vs. last week and down 7.78% from the same week last year. Mexico was the largest buyer of nearly half at 203,835 MT, with 62,685 MT to Saudi Arabia. Marketing year exports have totaled 4.719 MMT (185.76 mbu) so far this year, which is up 19.03% vs. the same month and half last year. 

CONAB released their initial 2024/25 crop numbers this morning, showing the total corn crop at 119.74 MMT, up 4.04 MMT from their estimate for the 2023/24 marketing year. The larger second crop is estimated at 94.63 MMT, a 4.37 MMT increase yr/yr.

Dec 24 Corn  closed at $4.01 1/4, down 7 cents,

Nearby Cash  was $3.69 3/4, down 6 3/4 cents,

Mar 25 Corn  closed at $4.17 1/2, down 7 1/4 cents,

May 25 Corn  closed at $4.26, down 7 cents,