The white maize spot price dropped week-on-week to R6,030, while the Jul’25 price rose to R4,233. The yellow maize spot price dropped week-on-week to R4,810, with the Jul’25 price now at R3,855 per ton. The soybean spot price dropped week-on-week to R9,002, while the May’25 price is at R7,500 per ton.

The sunflower spot price dropped week-on-week to R10,698, with the May’25 price at R9,655 per ton. The wheat spot price rose week-on-week to R5,951, with the Mar’25 price at R6,067 per ton. The sorghum import parity price landed in Durban at R5,474 per ton, while the producer import parity price for dehusked Argentine groundnuts traded at R27,521 per ton, and the cotton import parity price traded at R10,060 per ton.

The biggest international news last week was China approving sorghum imports from Brazil, and the industry expects that China, which traditionally received sorghum from the US, will now source it from Brazil instead. The effect is still unclear, as Brazil is not a top sorghum producer. CBOT maize prices were volatile last week but are still at lower levels compared to a week ago. Weather conditions in Brazil and Argentina remain favorable, but there is slight concern that Brazil might not plant their Safrina maize on time, which places further pressure on global stocks since Argentina planted fewer hectares due to a locust problem. CBOT soybeans are still in a downward trend, with prices lower than a week ago. The potential large Brazilian crop continues to put pressure on prices, while China struggles to get its economy going, which is the biggest demand driver. CBOT wheat prices were also volatile last week and are still lower than a week ago. Russia’s stocks are depleting but still exporting at a strong pace, while Kazakhstan’s exports to China have increased, Australia expects a better harvest, and Argentina is currently cheaper than the Black Sea region.

Locally, white maize held its upward trend last week, but yellow maize dropped slightly. The suspicion is that both white and yellow maize have now reached a point where demand is offering significant resistance to prices, and consumers are beginning to look for alternatives. We are hearing more about spaza shops that need to be registered and have also seen several reports of unsafe food. This is having a significant impact on the demand for maize products, and we are already hearing of a few mills not operating at full capacity. I am quite concerned about the potential impact this could have on the demand for especially white maize, which remains at very high price levels. It seems there is good progress being made with the planting overall, with some exceptions, of course. I am still concerned about where maize and soybean prices could go from here by the end of March as our local supply increases.

Locally, wheat has also continued its upward trend as we expected, and we suspect this price will continue to rise until it catches up with import parity prices. These prices are now around the R6,100 mark, and we expect the price to stabilize around that level until new market news comes in that could influence prices.