By Kirk Maltais


--Wheat for July delivery rose 1.7% to $5.90 1/2 a bushel on the Chicago Board of Trade on Monday amid less-than-anticipated rainfall in winter-wheat growing areas over the weekend.

--Corn for July delivery rose 0.1% to $4.51 3/4 a bushel.

--Soybeans for July delivery fell 1.3% to $11.75 1/2 a bushel.


HIGHLIGHTS


Dry Weekend: An absence of rains helped boost the most-active wheat contract. "Key producing areas in the western half of Kansas, a good portion of western Nebraska and eastern Colorado missed out on any significant precipitation, especially over the weekend," said Joel Karlin of Ocean State Research. Winter wheat crops continue to suffer due to drought conditions, Karlin adds. The USDA projected 35% of winter wheat in good or excellent condition last week.

Acreage Balance: The U.S. blockade of the Strait of Hormuz has grain traders reconsidering how many acres of corn and soybeans farmers intend to plant. "Ideas fertilizer pricing and availability could reduce corn acreage is providing a bid for corn as soybeans slide lower on thoughts that more swing acres could be planted to soybeans," said Brady Huck of EmpowerAg Trading. The USDA reduced its outlook for planted corn acres by less than expected in its Prospective Plantings report last month, at 95 million acres.

World Stage: Iran is now threatening the safety of ports in the Persian Gulf and the Sea of Oman in retaliation for a U.S. blockade of maritime traffic entering and exiting all Iranian ports, apparently including those beyond the Strait of Hormuz along the Gulf of Oman. With crude oil futures climbing as a result of this heightened military activity, grains like corn saw some support early in the trading session. "With the energy-led macro bid flowing into the grain and oilseed markets, weather is on the back-burner for now," said Joe Davis of Futures International.


INSIGHT


Greater Rate of Speed: Export inspections of U.S. corn fell back from the prior week and the same week last year, but total inspections for the market year remain well above where they were at this time last year. In its latest weekly report Monday, the Department of Agriculture said corn export inspections for the week ended April 9 totaled 1.78 million metric tons. That's down from 2.05 million tons last week and 1.83 million tons for the same week last year. Corn inspections for the full marketing year remain well above the same time last year, according to the USDA, at 50.2 million tons for the current marketing year, up 34% from last year.

Lesser Attention: Cotton futures on the Intercontinental Exchange are at their highest point in nearly two years, rising 0.4% to 75.62 cents a pound. Prices have gained nearly 20% year to date. Weather in cotton-growing areas is exceedingly dry, which is making an already-shrinking cotton crop in the U.S. potentially even smaller. Last week's WASDE report from the USDA showed expected production at 13.9 million bales. Some farmers have opted to plant more corn and soybeans in lieu of cotton in order to cover for the cost of planting farmed acreages.


AHEAD


-The EIA will release its Weekly Petroleum Status Update report at 10:30 a.m. ET Wednesday.

-The USDA will release its weekly export sales report at 8:30 a.m. ET Thursday.

-The USDA will release its monthly Cattle on Feed report at 3 p.m. ET Friday.

-The CFTC will release its weekly Commitment of Traders report at 3:30 p.m. ET Friday.


Write to Kirk Maltais at kirk.maltais@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

04-13-26 1519ET