Market Impact of the June 30 Acreage and Grain Stocks Reports

By J. Mark Welch

For its first official production estimates of the new crop year, published in the May World Agricultural Supply and Demand Estimates (WASDE), USDA relies on the planted acreage number from the Prospective Plantingssurvey conducted in late February to mid-March and reported at the end of March. Compared to those March survey numbers, the annual Acreage and quarterly Grain Stocks reports released by USDA at the end of June can change those numbers significantly, thus having the potential to be a major market mover.  

In the May WASDE (and carried forward unchanged in the June WASDE), USDA estimated 95.3 million acres of corn for 2025 (Table 1) and harvested acres of 87.4 million (91.7% harvest rate).  That compares to 90.6 million acres planted in 2024 and 82.9 million harvested (91.5% harvest rate).