Tuesday, May 19, 2026
Closing Markets: Corn: -1.75 old & -0.25 new.
Beans: -3.50 old & +2 new. Wheat: +2.75 old & new.

Topflight Grain is offering Free DP on soybeans to all full-time locations except Maroa based on space availability good through August 31, 2026.

We are also offering Free DP on corn delivered to Pierson and Milmine based on space availability good through August 31, 2026.

Good evening!


Market Recap-
Despite marginal follow-through buying early in the overnight session yesterday evening that sent futures to new highs for the week, markets in the ag space closed mixed to mostly lower Tuesday on what was one of the slower headline days of the last few weeks. Trader focus as of today is centered on 1) China; 2) the Middle East; and 3) the US growing season, and there was simply little if anything at all new with any of those three fronts throughout the day today.


Corn Summary-
The corn market closed unchanged to quietly lower on Tuesday, though both old and new crop contracts made new highs for the week early in the evening yesterday before slowly drifting lower throughout the day today and into the close as there was little news driving prices. On top of the prospects of buying by the Chinese, which are obviously bullish, also continuing to support the corn market is both dry weather in Brazil, which has trimmed the top end off safrinha production, as well as too wet weather through parts of the US, which has some newswires talking of acreage shifts to the tune of possibly 1+ million by the time fall rolls around. Last year again proved that there can be notable changes from the March intentions report to the June final figures, and less-than-ideal weather so far through April and May has set the stage again for another round of potential surprises this year.

Soybean Summary-
Soybean futures closed mixed on Tuesday, with the new crop contracts stronger and the old crop contracts weaker on ideas that any new Chinese demand likely shows up in a new crop position as opposed to old. However, any opinion on the situation, educated as it may be, is likely speculation at this point, with there probably nobody that knows for certain how this new trade deal plays out over the next six months, or on a larger scale, over the next three years. Bessent seemed to make it rather apparent that any deal regarding soybeans was done before the $17 billion was announced, which has some questioning why the beans rallied so much on the new investment news. To our knowledge, there has been no change in the idea that China is going to buy 25 MMTs of soybeans this year, which we assume is accounted for in WASDE's export figure published last week. However, as is often the case with China news, traders have been conditioned to shoot first and ask questions later, which can produce whippy price action.

Wheat Summary-
Wheat futures closed quietly higher on Tuesday, seeing generally the most strength out of the group following a somewhat unexpected 1% drop in G/EX readings in yesterday afternoon's weekly crop progress update that took the national number to it's lowest level since the 90's. Otherwise, it was a slow news day here as well, with little else in the way of fresh input. At the top yesterday evening, July futures were in spitting distance of the highs made last week just below $7, but ended up settling well off that level by the close this afternoon, which would indicate, for now anyway, there at least appears to be some sort of solid overhead resistance just below the $7 mark.

Outside News Headlines-
Crude oil futures near unchanged/bbl.

Weather Updates-
Weather forecasts for the Corn Belt are little changed this afternoon from prior runs, with the slow moving frontal boundary that produced rains and storms through the west yesterday working it's way south and east through the Midwest today and into tomorrow. Once the system exits, precip chances the rest of the week and into next week become much more focused on the southeast and areas along the Gulf, while the west and northwest still have rain potential but it will be lighter and more scattered.
Cooler air settles into most of the eastern 2/3s of the US the rest of the week this week, but does not look to be long-lived as models are in good agreement on warmer western US air working east again by the weekend and into next week.
Precip anomaly maps in the week two period trended wetter across the central part of the country on Tuesday; the models still show the wettest conditions likely in the southeast, but now also have average to above average moisture chances through the Plains and most of of the Midwest as well. High pressure ridging over the Hudson Bay Area in the northeast keeps this part of the country generally on the warmer/drier side, with one of the main questions over the next 10-15 days being how far west is that high pressure able to move.


Enjoy it!


Bailey Runyen
Grain Originator | Topflight Grain Coop.
101 N. Main St. | Cisco, IL 61830
Phone :: 217-669-2141
Email :: brunyen@tfgrain.com
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