Monday Market Briefing - 10th August 2026

Prices bobble along sideways for the time being with Nov 26 parked just under £200 on LIFFE. US corn crops are enjoying a benign spell of weather which takes a lot of the stress out of the market, in contrast the impact of the summer’s hot  weather on European supply is becoming clear. French corn is under severe stress and will be a much-reduced crop. Presumably Ukrainian supply, which is not quota restricted in the way wheat is, will flood inwards to fill the gap. That said, the movement of grain across Europe is going to be restricted post-harvest by the lack of water in most major freight carrying rivers including the Rhine and the Danube. Barges, if they can move at all, will be carrying reduced cargoes. As we’ve said before, the World has plenty of grain, getting it from where it is to where it’s needed is going to be this year’s challenge.

As harvest moves steadily into Scotland and Scandinavia, the idea that northerly crops will be the pick of the bunch this year is about to be tested. Early results from both origins have been rather more ‘average’ than many expected. The exceptionally early finish to harvest in England has lent the industry the luxury of extra time to contemplate what it might do with the crop in front of it, as we move into proper new crop positions later in August the pace of buying interest will pick up and new opportunities are bound to emerge.

Have a good week.