WASHINGTON — The US Department of Agriculture in its annual Acreage report on June 30 estimated 2020 corn planted area at 92,006,000 acres, down 5% from the March Prospective Plantings forecast but up 2.6% from 2019. Harvested area was forecast at 84,023,000 acres, up 3.3% from a year ago.
Soybean planted area was estimated at 83,825,000 acres, up 0.4% from March intentions and up 10% from 2019, with harvested area forecast at 83,020,000 acres, up 11% from last year.
All wheat area planted for harvest in 2020 was estimated at 44,250,000 acres, down 0.9% from March, down 2% from 2019 and the lowest since USDA records began in 1919. Planted area compares with 44,655,000 acres in the June USDA Crop Production report.
Winter wheat planted area was estimated at 30,550,000 acres, down 2% from 2019, down 0.7% from the prior estimate and the second lowest on record (including hard red winter at 21.5 million, soft red winter at 5.63 million and white winter at 3.42 million), durum at 1,500,000 acres, up 12% from last year, and spring wheat other than durum at 12,200,000 acres, down 3.6% from 2019 and down 3.1% from March (including hard red spring at 11.5 million). Harvested area for winter wheat was forecast at 23,439,000 acres, down 3.7% from 2019 and the lowest on record, with durum at 1,444,000 acres, up 23%, and spring wheat other than durum at 11,795,000 acres, up 1.2%.
USDA planted acreage estimates noted above all were below the average of trade expectations except for durum.
CME Group corn and soybean futures traded sharply higher after the 11:00 a.m. Central Time release of the reports. Kansas City, Chicago and Minneapolis wheat futures also shot higher after the reports with the largest gains posted in Minneapolis spring wheat futures.
The USDA, in its Grain Stocks report, estimated June 1 old-crop all wheat stocks, which comprise 2020 carryover, at 1,044 million bus, down 3.3% from June 1, 2019, including 232 million bus on farms, up 12%, and 812 million bus off farms, down 7%. March-May indicated disappearance of wheat was 372 million bus, down 28% from the same period last year.
Durum stocks were 42.8 million bus, down 22% from a year ago. March-May disappearance of durum was indicated at 8.55 million bus, down 56% from last year.
Corn stocks in all positions on June 1 were estimated at 5,224 million bus, up 0.4% from a year earlier, including 3,025 million bus on farms, up 2.6%, and 2,199 million bus off farms, down 2.4%. Indicated disappearance of corn during the March-May period was 2.73 billion bus, down 20% from a year earlier.
Soybean stocks on June 1 were estimated at 1,386 million bus, down 22% from last year, with on-farm stocks at 633 million bus, down 13%, and off-farm stocks at 753 million bus, down 28%. Indicated March-May soybean disappearance of 869 million bus was down 8% from the same period in 2019.
USDA wheat and soybean stocks estimates were below the average of trade expectations while the corn estimate was above, although most market impact from the latter was offset by the lower-than-expected corn plantings estimate.