Corn production estimates for 2006/07 in Argentina and Brazil were boosted this month, increasing global coarse grains production. Since the corn harvest is ongoing in Argentina, production estimates for the 2006/07 crop are preliminary. However, most of the harvest is done, and corn yields have been better than expected. Some corn area was lost to flooding in March but not enough to offset the record yields elsewhere. Argentina’s corn production is forecast to reach a record 22.5 million tons, up 0.5 million tons this month. Brazil’s 2006/07 corn harvest is also not complete, with second-crop corn still growing. However, the main-season crop harvest is complete, and reported record yields have exceeded expectations. The expansion of second-crop area was reported to have been a bit larger than expected. These factors were enough to more than offset some adverse weather for the second crop, with cold in some areas and dryness in others. Brazil’s corn production for 2006/07 is forecast up 0.5 million tons to a record 50.0 million tons.
The South American corn production increases accounted for most of the 1.2 million-ton increase in estimated 2006/07 world coarse grains production. The foreign consumption forecast was reduced slightly, with less feed use in Argentina and Ukraine. These changes combined to boost world coarse grains ending stocks for 2006/07 by 1.6 million tons to 125.4 million tons, with most of the month-to month increase in the United States.