Portland Grain Review 05/03

May 3, 2016 Portland Price Trends 05-01-15 08-01-15 04-01-16 04-26-16 05-03-16 #1 SWW (bu) 6.20 5.67 5.14 5.24 5.18 White Club 7.70 6.42 5.34 5.54 5.38 DNS 14% 7.33 6.19 6.24 6.27 6.21 HRW 11.5% 6.07 5.60 5.52 5.53 5.31 #2 Corn (ton) 153.00 160.00 153.00 164.00 163.00 #2 Barley 140.00 159.00 140.00 145.00 145.00 Wheat...West coast wheat markets saw price levels erode today against the decline across the futures complex, with basis levels holding steady. Markets have now pulled back toward the lower end of a 30-cent range put in place over the past three weeks, with producer marketings grinding to a halt after the recent spike in prices. Shipments...Weekly export inspections showed total US wheat shipments declined from last week to 13 mb, putting year-to-date loadings at 676 mb and 13% behind a year ago. Top shipper for the week was hard red spring wheat with 4 mb, followed by hard red winter at 3.2 mb and soft white at nearly 2 mb. Top destinations off the west coast were Japan, China, South Korea and Taiwan. Crop Progress...Near ideal weather continues to bolster overall winter wheat conditions across the Pacific Northwest, with the three-state index gainiong another point to stand at 106% of average. At 392 out of a 500 point scale, the weighted index is the best week 5 rating since 2012 and sets nearly a full standard deviation above the 30-year average. Leading the increase was a 2-point bump in good to excellent for Idaho, which is now at 90 %. Washington slipped a point out of that category but still a solid 82% and Oregon was unchanged at 65%. Montana winter wheat also saw a 5 point jump to 65% good to excellent. Spring wheat plantings show the US crop going in 15% ahead of the average pace, with both Washington and Idaho near the -five-year average. -Norm Ruhoff Extension Economist University of Idaho CALS-AERS Copyright 2016 DTN/Telvent. All Rights Reserved.