U.S. Soy Acreage to Increase, Survey Shows; Corn, Wheat to Fall

Bloomberg
March 26, 2009
By Jeff Wilson

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March 26 (Bloomberg) -- U.S. farmers may sow record soybean acreage this year because of higher costs to plant corn, wheat and other crops, analysts and traders said.

About 79.11 million acres will be planted with soybeans, up 4.5 percent from 75.72 million in 2008, according to the average estimate of 24 analysts in a Bloomberg News survey. To make room for the oilseed, corn acreage will fall 1.5 percent and spring- wheat seedings may drop 3.3 percent, the analysts said before the government updates its acreage estimates next week.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture will also update its estimates of soybean, wheat and corn supplies.

Soybean inventories on March 1 may have dropped 7.5 percent from a year earlier after China bought a record amount of the U.S. crop in the first six months of the marketing year that began in September, according to the average estimate of 13 analysts surveyed.

Corn stockpiles at the beginning of March may total 7.012 billion bushels, up 2.2 percent from a year earlier and the highest since 1988, according to the survey. Reserve supplies of wheat may be at a seven-year high, the analysts said.

The USDA is scheduled to release its survey of farmers’ planting intentions and estimates of quarterly grain inventories on March 31 at 8:30 a.m. in Washington.

NOTICE: In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, this material is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving this information for research and educational purposes.

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