The white maize spot price has increased week-on-week to R5,908, while the July 2025 price dropped to R3,805. The yellow maize spot price rose week-on-week to R4,904, with the July 2025 price now at R3,705 per ton. The soybean spot price increased week-on-week to R8,980, while the May 2025 price stands at R7,400 per ton. The sunflower spot price rose week-on-week to R11,250, with the May 2025 price at R9,795 per ton. The wheat spot price declined week-on-week to R5,740, with the December price at R5,870 per ton. The sorghum import parity price landed in Durban at R5,278 per ton, while the producer import parity price for shelled Argentine groundnuts is trading at R26,673 per ton, and the cotton import parity price is at R10,000 per ton.

Last week, the new WASDE (World Agricultural Supply and Demand Estimates) report was released. It showed that US soybean and maize production was adjusted downwards, as was the ending stock. Regarding wheat, US production was slightly adjusted upwards due to good rains over the past week in the US, but ending stocks remained unchanged. Global wheat stocks were slightly upgraded, with Kazakhstan making up for production losses in Russia. CBOT (Chicago Board of Trade) maize, wheat, and soybean prices strengthened over the past 3 days due to higher demand, which has led to more exports. US analysts suspect that higher exports can be attributed to concerns that, once Trump takes office in January, he might impose import tariffs, although nothing has been confirmed yet. Brazil has also caught up with their soybean plantings. However, they expect favorable weather for the rest of November, which could later put pressure on international prices.

Locally, we see that maize prices are still maintaining their strong upward trend, but we expect these prices to start stabilizing around these levels as demand decreases, with consumers looking for cheaper alternatives. For the new season, we still expect that weather, earlier plantings, and the rate at which producers are planting will drive prices, and we expect these prices to move sideways for now until more news reaches the market. The soybean spot prices remain in a slight upward trend and will likely stay this way until news reaches the market. The May 2025 soybean contract is now traded on a new system, with 100 tons per contract instead of 50 tons. This contract is also not experiencing much price movement, and we suggest you consult your grain trader about how this contract differs from previous ones. Sunflower prices are still in a strong upward trend, which we attribute to the drought and the conflict in Ukraine.

Wheat prices have been in a downward trend over the past two weeks, which we attribute to harvest and delivery pace. However, local prices are still cheaper than import parity, and we expect that as harvest pressure decreases, we may start to see a shift in the trend.