Corn barge bids steady to down, USDA reports export sales

Basis bids for corn delivered by barge to U.S. Gulf Coast terminals were steady to weaker on Friday as the United States faced competition for export sales from cheaper supplies in South America, traders said. Argentina and Brazil are offering corn for export at values below the U.S. Gulf from July onward, with Argentina seen as the cheapest supplier, they said. Still, exporters sold a total of 210,560 metric tons of U.S. corn to unknown destinations, the U.S. Department of Agriculture said via a daily reporting system. Of the total, 145,560 metric tons was for 2024-25 delivery and 65,000 metric tons was for 2025-26. USDA also reported daily U.S. corn sales to Mexico and unknown buyers on Thursday. In the week that ended on May 22, U.S. corn export sales were 916,700 metric tons for 2024-25, down 34% from the prior four-week average, according to the USDA. Analysts expected 750,000 to 1.4 million metric tons. For 2025-26, export sales of 31,000 metric tons were toward the low end ...