Nearby sunflower prices continue to trade above the 60-day moving average price at the crush plants. Last week nearby prices were down 20 cents to unchanged with new crop unchanged to up 25 cents at the crush plants. If you are concerned about the weather impacting yields, plants are still offering Act of God (AOG) new crop contracts for fall delivery. On the CBoT, traders are on the lookout for fresh headlines regarding the Iran-U.S. war. This will likely keep risk premium heightened across grain markets, though a continued brisk planting pace may limit upside. Soyoil futures have led the soy complex higher as speculators bought actively in anticipation of greater biofuels demand. However the managed money net long in soyoil futures has swelled to a record, which could leave the soy complex vulnerable to a profit-taking selloff. U.S. farmers also face stiff competition from cheaper South American supplies, with Brazil having mostly wrapped up what’s believed to be a record harvest. StoneX boosted its estimate for Brazil’s 2026 soybean crop by 1.96 MMT, or 1.1%, to 181.62 MMT (6.67 billion bushels). USDA, by comparison, forecasts the Brazil harvest at a 180 MMT, up 4.3% from 2025 and a record for the third year in the past four. This week USDA will release the World Agricultural Supply and Demand Estimates (WASDE) report for May, which includes the first detailed forecast for 2026-27 production of corn, wheat and soybeans. WASDE news, weather and planting progress will be the main price determining factors in the week ahead.
ADM Enderlin, Cargill West Fargo and Colorado Mills crush plants are offering 2026 new crop cash and Act of God (AOG) High Oleic contracts. ADM is at $23.05 cash and $22.60 AOG. Cargill is at $23.30 cash and 22.80 AOG. Colorado Mills is at $22.00 AOG. Something else to consider is the oil premiums that crush plants pay on sunflowers. Sunflower is the only oilseed that pays premiums for oil content above 40%. Considering oil premiums that are offered at the crush plants on oil content above 40% at a rate of 2% price premium for each 1% of oil above 40%; this pushes a contract with 45% oil content gross return 10% higher per cwt. The AOG $22.60 contract increases to $24.85 and the cash $23.30 contract moves up to $25.65.
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