From WATTAgNet:

The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) first estimates for crop production this year has been released.

In the USDA’s May World Agricultural Supply and Demand Estimate report, it said that, overall, wheat production would be higher and corn and soybeans would be lower this season.

Production

• Wheat: Projected at 2,087 million bushels, up 3 percent
• Corn: Projected at 13.6 billion bushels, down 586 million
• Soybeans: Projected at 3,850 million bushels, down 119 million

U.S. corn farmers harvested a record 14.2 billion bushels of corn in 2014, with a record national average yield of 171 bushels per acre.

Demand in Asia

In March, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development said Asia’s growing middle class, and its changing tastes and diets, is increasing demand for grains, especially wheat, marking a boon for Australia and the United States. By 2030, two-thirds of the global middle class, or 3.3 billion people, will be living in Asia, with China accounting for the largest share from just 1.8 billion now.

The U.S. Agricultural Trade Office in Beijing said it expects China to continue to increase its imports of soybeans though the 2015-16 marketing year, according to the Peoples Republic of China Oilseeds and Products Annual. The forecast for Chinese imports of soybeans is 77.5 million tons, up 4.5 million tons from the forecast for the current year.