Chicago wheat reached the highest in three months, while Kansas futures were at their loftiest levels since late September after a report showed how dry, cold weather has affected the winter crop.
Crop conditions in Kansas, the biggest grower of winter wheat in the U.S., was rated only 14% good or excellent as of Sunday, according to the USDA. About 10% was rated very poor, 34% was rated poor, and 42% was fair.
About 37% of the crop was rated good or excellent a month earlier. Extremely dry weather has plunged the Southern Plains into a drought, with the entirety of the Oklahoma and Texas panhandles in either a severe or extreme drought as of January 23, according to the U.S. Drought Monitor.
Little or no rain has fallen in the Southern Plains in the past 30 days, according to the National Weather Service.
Wheat for March delivery rose 6¼¢ to $4.55½ a bushel in overnight trading on the Chicago Board of Trade. Kansas City futures jumped 10¾¢ to $4.63¾ a bushel.
Corn futures rose 2¢ to $3.60¾ a bushel overnight.
Soybean futures for March delivery gained 2¾¢ to $9.94¼ a bushel. Soybean meal futures gained $1.30 to $338.70 a short ton, while soy oil fell 0.10¢ to 32.77¢ a pound.
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