Grain export sales were nothing short of lackluster in USDA’s latest report, out Friday morning and covering the week through January 2. Corn, soybean and wheat volumes all tumbled to marketing-year lows. That was not totally surprising, however, given that the latest data covered the days just past Christmas into early January, a notoriously slow time of year for sales.

Corn exports were lackluster after only reaching 17.5 million bushels last week. Analysts missed the mark after offering trade guesses that ranged between 27.6 million and 59.1 million bushels. Cumulative totals for the 2024/25 marketing year are still tracking moderately ahead of last year’s pace after reaching 654.0 million bushels.

Corn export shipments fared better but were still 21% below the prior four-week average, with 34.0 million bushels. Mexico, Colombia, Japan, South Korea and the Dominican Republic were the top five destinations.

Sorghum export sales faced minor net reductions last week, spilling 99% below the prior four-week average. Cumulative totals for the 2024/25 marketing year are less than half of last year’s pace so far, with 40.4 million bushels.

Soybean exports eroded 72% below the prior four-week average to 10.6 million bushels, which was a marketing-year low. It was also lower than the entire set of analyst estimates, which ranged between 14.7 million and 51.4 million bushels. Cumulative totals for the 2024/25 marketing year are still tracking moderately above last year’s pace so far after reaching 1.101 billion bushels.

Related:USDA exports – China buys soybeans, Taiwan buys corn, Jan. 16, 2025

Soybean export shipments eased 7% below the prior week’s volume, with 58.1 million bushels. China, the Netherlands, Indonesia, Vietnam and Germany were the top five destinations.

Wheat exports were disappointing after only reaching 4.2 million bushels last week. That was also below the entire set of analyst estimates, which ranged between 5.5 million and 20.2 million bushels. Cumulative totals for the 2024/25 marketing year are still trending moderately ahead of last year’s pace, with 454.2 million bushels.

Wheat export shipments improved 22% above the prior four-week average, reaching 15.2 million bushels. Mexico, South Korea, Nigeria, the Philippines and Indonesia were the top five destinations.

Click here for more highlights from the latest UDSA export sales report.