Corn futures shot 22.75 cents higher on Monday. Wet and cold weather across the Midwest has delayed planting of the corn crops and yields could drop substantially this season. It will be critical to monitor the weather reports for the Midwest in the next couple weeks as well as the USDA crop progress reports that are released each Monday.

The USDA Crop Progress report released this Monday stated that only 10 percent of the corn crop has been planted as of April 27. The five-year average for this time of year is 35 percent. It is critical for the corn crop to get planted by at least mid-May. It is even better to have it planted before the end of April.

Yields can drop dramatically if the crops are not mature enough to withstand the summer heat, especially during the critical pollination stage in July. If we see prolonged heat and dryness in July (especially temperatures in the high 90’s or 100’s), the crop losses could be severe. That could cause corn futures prices to move much higher.