Starting in January, big U.S. government crop reports will come out in the late morning in Western Canadian time zones.
U.S. Department of Agriculture crop reports have long been released at 8:30 a.m. eastern time but will now move to noon EST.
The change comes as a response to the decision of the Chicago commodity exchange and other exchanges to move to extend trading hours.
USDA received 147 comments on whether it should move its reporting timing.
“The shift to a noon release allows for the greatest liquidity in the markets, provides the greatest access to the reports during working hours in the United States, and continues equal access to data among all parties,” said USDA chief economist Joseph Glauber.
Reports that are released at 3 p.m. EST will not change.
