USDA raises cotton crop guess, lowers rice stocks

The USDA increased its cotton production and ending stocks estimates.

This year’s crop is now seen at 16.5 million bales, up 1 million from May, on a higher harvested area guess, now at 9.41 million acres, 700,000 higher, which canceled out a lower yield projection of 841 pounds per acre, down 13.

That increase in production mostly canceled out a lower old crop ending stocks figure and pushed the new crop ending stocks guess to 3.5 million bales, 200,000 more than a month ago.

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