Chicago corn futures closed on Friday with their biggest annual loss in a decade, while wheat and soybeans also posted sharp annual declines after huge harvests in Brazil and robust Black Sea trade eased concerns about weather and war.
The most active corn contract closed down 31% over the course of 2023, the largest decline since 2013 for the most traded crop globally.
Wheat also fell 21% this year, while soybeans lost 15%.
Cereals and vegetable oils will end a multi-year series of price gains related to declining crops, the “Covid-19” pandemic, and Russia’s war on Ukraine.
Record corn crops this year in Brazil and the United States, as well as an all-time high in Brazilian soybean production, helped offset severe drought in Argentina.
But improved rainfall in Argentina near the end of the year allowed farmers to make good progress in planting the next corn and soybean crops.
Next year, farmers are likely to feel the effects of lower prices and prioritize soybean cultivation in the United States.
A state of calm prevailed in grain markets thanks to large wheat exports from Russia, which also harvested a huge crop this year, and the recovery of grain shipments from Ukraine after Kiev operated a new shipping lane.
Futures contracts fell due to small quantities yesterday, Friday, on the last trading day in 2023.
The most active corn contract on the Chicago Board of Trade fell to $4.71 per bushel (a unit of weight equivalent to 20.4 kilograms) at settlement.
The most active wheat also fell to $6.28 per bushel (27.2 kilograms), while soybeans fell to $12.98 per bushel (27.2 kilograms).
