For the week ending Aug. 23, corn and soybean export inspections have just one week remaining for the 2017/18 marketing year, and they look to cross the finish line ahead of USDA estimates if everything goes well, according to Farm Futures senior grain market analyst Bryce Knorr.

“With just a week left in the 2017 crop marketing year for corn and soybeans, both should reach USDA’s forecast if they can maintain the pace from this week,” he says.

Corn export inspections last week reached 49.0 million bushels, up from the prior week’s tally of 43.2 million bushels and touching the high end of the average trade guess, which ranged between 35 million and 49 million bushels. Year-to-date totals for the 2017/18 marketing year finally pulled slightly ahead of the prior marketing year after reaching 2.220 billion bushels (versus 2.210 billion over the same period in 2016/17).

Japan was the No. 1 destination for U.S. corn export inspections last week, topping 15.6 million bushels. Other top destinations included Mexico (9.9 million), Peru (5.7 million), South Korea (5.1 million), Taiwan (3.3 million) and Saudi Arabia (2.9 million).

Soybean export inspections reached 33.1 million bushels last week, moderately outpacing the prior week’s total of 23.9 million bushels and exceeding the average trade guess, which ranged between 18 million and 31 million bushels. The weekly rate needed to meet USDA forecasts now stands at 35.2 million bushels, with 2017/18 totals of 2.040 billion bushels just 2.8% behind the pace of 2016/17. 

Mexico came in as the No. 1destination for U.S. soybean export inspections last week, tallying 7.3 million bushels. Other top destinations included the Netherlands (5.7 million), Egypt (3.4 million), Vietnam (2.8 million), Iran (2.5 million) and Bangladesh (2.1 million). 

Wheat export inspections reached 17.9 million bushels in its own young 20189/19 marketing year, which began July 1. That total was incrementally below the prior week’s tally of 18.0 million bushels but on the high end of the average trade guess, which ranged between 12 million and 18 million bushels. The weekly rate needed to meet USDA forecasts moved slightly higher, to 20.7 million bushels. Totals for 2018/19 remain at a relatively slow start, with a cumulative total of 178 million bushels, which is 35% below last year’s pace.

The Philippines accounted for more than a third of all U.S. wheat export inspections last week, with 6.8 million bushels. Other top destinations included South Korea (2.3 million), Japan (2.2 million) and Mexico (1.3 milllion).