Web exclusive posted March 31, 2008 at 2:25 p.m. CST

The first glimpse into the commodity markets’ battle for acres was provided today in the seasons’ first USDA Prospective Planting Report. As expected, soybean acreage is up 18 percent from the previous year and all wheat acreage is up 6 percent but farmers intend to plant 8 percent less than 2007’s high in corn acres. Spring weather conditions will be watched closely to see if farmers’ initial planting intentions shift as regional planting conditions unfold.

As expected, soybean growers are boosting acreage in 2008. Soybean producers intend to plant 74.8 million acres, up 18 percent from last year, but 1 percent below the record high soybean acreage in 2006. Acreage increases are expected in all states, except in West Virginia, which is unchanged from last year. The largest increases are expected in Iowa and Nebraska, up 1.25 million acres and 1.20 million acres from 2007, respectively. Increases of at least 800,000 acres are also expected in Indiana, Minnesota, and South Dakota. If realized, the planted acreage in Kansas, New York, and Pennsylvania will be the largest on record.

In the grain stocks report, the USDA said soybeans stored in all positions on March 1 totaled 1.43 billion bushels, down 20 percent from the previous year’s number. Soybean stocks stored on farms are estimated at 593 million bushels, down 35 percent from a year ago. Off-farm stocks, at 835 million bushels, are down 5 percent from March 2007. The USDA reported soybean disappearance for the December 2007 to February 2008 quarter totaled 904 million bushels, down 1 percent from the same period a year earlier.