Market Matters Blog

Corn basis remained strong this week and is up 3 cents since Monday, but soybean basis has struggled and is 7 cents lower than Monday. Basis levels began to weaken on the interior followed by sharp drops in river basis levels. Even with a drop in soybean basis levels, the DTN national average basis this week is $1.12 per bushel higher than the 5-year average with the average corn basis $1.20 per bushel higher than the 5-year average. Weekly inspections for both corn and soybeans were lower for the week with wheat inspections only slightly lower. Still, wheat inspections were 16% higher than the 4-week average and are 13% higher than this time last year. USDA reported in their weekly Grain Transportation Report that during the week ended July 6, total grain movement on the river was 376,050 tons and was 8% lower than the previous week and 35% lower than the same timeframe last year. There were 102 grain barges moving downriver, which was down 9% from the prior week with total barges unloading in the Gulf down 27.2% from last week.

Traffic along the river began to pick up late last week as water levels began retreating and the Army Corps of Engineers was able to reopen all of the closed locks by the weekend. USDA's weekly report showed levels in the Ohio River corridor have increased in Paducah, Ky., and Cairo, Ill., with the river in Cairo at 42.98 feet this morning, which is three feet above flood stage. The NWS office in Paducah is predicting the river will remain at 43 feet at least through Saturday. The Mississippi River in Memphis is also rising slightly at 25.11 feet this morning and is predicted to reach 27 feet by early next week, but it is not expected to reach flood stage of 34 feet. However, just as all the locks were nearly reopened, a tugboat sank 75 miles southeast of the Port of New Orleans on Saturday, closing the river in the lower Mississippi basin.

As the Coast Guard continued to search for the tugboat, the river reopened Sunday, but only on an alternating one-way traffic plan with reports of 28 southbound and 22 northbound vessels waiting to move. A news release from the U.S. Coast Guard stated, "The Army Corps of Engineers completed two survey passes from mile marker eight to mile marker zero above Head of Passes without identifying navigation hazards," thus allowing the river to reopen, but with restrictions. The search finally ended when the tugboat was found and pulled from the water Wednesday with news reports that recovery was hindered by high water and strong currents. The river was finally reopened to two-way traffic late Wednesday afternoon after five days of being plagued by stoppages and/or slowdowns of vessel traffic in that area.