Ethanol Blog

In what merchandisers described as a slow week in trade, spot prices of distillers dried grains mirrored movement of corn prices downward in the past week. The move was fueled by Thursday's USDA Grain Stocks and Acreage reports, which served to push corn prices down and soybeans higher.

The DTN weekly spot price average fell another $6 per ton in the past week, dropping from $160 to $154 per ton. After falling $8 per ton last week, price has dropped a total of $14 per ton in the past 14 days. This price plunge follows a nine-week, $52 increase between mid-April and late June.

Of the 36 Midwestern locations DTN collects spot prices from, 28 locations reported their spot prices fell between $3 and $15 per ton in the past week. Prices at eight locations remained unchanged since last week. No price increases were reported.

While Thursday's USDA Grain Stocks and Acreage reports served to push corn prices down and soybeans higher, merchandisers told DTN that trade has been sluggish this week, with customers waiting on the sideline to see if DDG prices fall any further. Some buyers may be waiting to see where prices land before deciding what protein source to purchase for rations. Consequently, demand has been down while customers await market movement.

The value of DDG relative to corn this week rose from 116% last week to more than 120% this week, the highest value since mid-June 2015. This is likely the biggest factor in the reluctant buying seen in recent weeks. The value of DDG relative to soybean meal was at just 38% this week, down from 42% last week.

The cost per unit of protein for DDG was at about $6.16 this week, still cheaper than the cost per unit of protein for soybean meal at $8.53.

Cheryl Anderson can be reached at Cheryl.anderson@dtn.com

(CZ)

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