Grains- Traders Cover Shorts Ahead of Inventory Report:1-2% Upticks

	Last	Chg
Corn	331-6s	+2-6
Soybeans	952-4s	+7-2
Wheat	404-0s	+8-0

From Agrimoney:

Traders cover grain market shorts as US stocks report looms

Grain futures rallied on short covering, ahead of this week's US stocks data, aided by news of slower-than-expected US harvest progress. 

And wheat gained support from wet weather worries in Australia, as well as good export demand in the US. 

Weekly harvest data from the US Department of Agriculture showed the corn harvest there was 15% complete, showing just how much rain has delayed the start to the harvest. 

Analysts forecast the harvest to be about 20% complete, compared to 25% at this time last year. 

Good harvest prospects this week

But the harvest is expected to continue mostly uninterrupted into the weekend. 

Kim Rugle, at Benson Quinn Commodities, said that "weather looks favourable for good harvest progress through the end of this week". 

"A large portion of the Corn Belt should get some decent weather which will help aid harvest," said Brent Hasbargen at CHS Hedging. 

"The eastern Corn Belt is expected to be drier that normal and the upper Midwest is looking to have above normal precipitation," he said. 

But weather is currently expected to turn wetter over the 6 to 14 day period. 

Stocks report

And markets are gaining from some short-covering ahead of the USDA grain stocks report, and small grains summery, which come out on Friday, particularly in wheat and corn where funds are heavily short. 

"Grain markets are higher as grain market bulls look for support from a 'turn around Tuesday'," said Paul Georgy, at Allendale. 

December corn futures finished up 0.9%, at $3.31 ¾ a bushel....MUCH MORE