Corn, Soybean Premiums Unchanged as Prices Rise to 29-Month High

Jan. 14 (Bloomberg) -- Cash premiums for corn and soybeans shipped this month to terminals near New Orleans were unchanged relative to Chicago futures as prices rose to 29-month highs this week and U.S. farmers increased sales from their inventory.

The spot-basis bid, or premium, for corn delivered in January at Gulf of Mexico ports were 36 cents to 38 cents a bushel above March futures, the same as yesterday, U.S. Department of Agriculture data showed. There was no reported spot bid available for soybeans for January delivery.

“Basis has been an underachiever relative to futures,” said Don Roose, the president of U.S. Commodities Inc. in West Des Moines, Iowa. “Farmers have been selling as prices rose, and now the upfront supply is greater than relative demand.”

Corn futures for March delivery rose 6.25 cents, or 1 percent, to close at $6.4875 a bushel on the Chicago Board of Trade. The grain rose 9 percent this week, the most since early October. Average spot cash bids for corn rose to $6.8675 a bushel, the highest since 2008.

Soybean futures for March delivery rose 6.5 cents, or 0.5 percent, to close at $14.225 a bushel in Chicago. The oilseed ended the week up 4.2 percent, the most since Dec. 3.

(Source: http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=newsarchive&sid=aGx_j1rosSdI)