Corn Pulls Out Gains into Monday’s Close

Group 1: Corn Market Overview - Corn futures closed higher on Monday, with nearby contracts showing fractional increases. The CmdtyView national average cash corn price rose by one cent to $3.81 1/2. The average close for December corn futures was $4.19, with less than two weeks remaining for harvest price discovery for crop insurance [1]. - The Export Inspections report indicated that 1.317 million metric tons (MMT) of corn were shipped in the week of October 16, marking an 8.9% increase from the previous week and a 31.62% rise compared to the same week last year. Mexico was the largest buyer, importing 443,141 MT, followed by Japan with 207,621 MT and Spain with 201,101 MT. The total corn shipped for the marketing year reached 9.338 MMT, which is 60.61% higher than the same period last year [2]. Group 2: International Trade and Planting Progress - President Trump threatened to cut aid and increase tariffs for Colombia in response to drug flow, which could impact Colombia's status as a top buyer of US corn [3]. - Brazil's first corn crop is estimated to be 51% planted in the south center region, slightly ahead of the 48% pace from the previous year [3].