U.S. corn export inspections continue to outpace year-ago levels, while soybean shipments remain behind last year's pace, according to the latest export inspection figures from the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
USDA reported corn export inspections totaled 1.91 million metric tons during the week ending Aug. 13. That was up from 1.76 million metric tons the previous week and sharply higher than the just over 1 million metric tons inspected during the comparable week last year.
The latest figures continue a strong marketing year for U.S. corn exports. Cumulative corn inspections are approaching 81 million metric tons, compared with 64.2 million metric tons at the same point last year.
Wheat export inspections also posted a modest weekly increase, reaching more than 493,000 metric tons. Despite the improvement, cumulative wheat inspections since June 1 remain below year-ago levels.
Soybeans moved in the opposite direction during the latest reporting week. USDA reported soybean inspections of approximately 270,000 metric tons, down from nearly 410,000 metric tons the previous week.
Soybean inspections were also well below the same period last year, when shipments exceeded 502,000 metric tons. Cumulative soybean inspections for the marketing year continue to trail last year's pace.
Export inspections are an indicator of the volume of U.S. agricultural commodities being prepared and cleared for shipment to international customers. The figures can provide an indication of overseas demand for major U.S. crops as the marketing year progresses.