CHICAGO, Dec 15 (Reuters) – Private analytics firm Informa Economics raised its projection of U.S. 2017 soybean plantings to 88.862 million acres and trimmed its corn plantings forecast to 90.151 million acres, two trade sources said on Thursday.
In November Informa pegged soybean seedings to 88.612 million acres, which would top the record high of 83.7 million acres, set in 2016. It put U.S. corn plantings at 90.841 million acres in November.
The sources, who requested anonymity, said Informa also lowered its estimate of U.S. winter wheat plantings for 2017 to 33.213 million acres, from 33.761 million last month.
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The firm estimated 2016 corn production at 15.275 billion bu., compared with the USDA’s last figure of 15.226 billion.
For soybeans, Informa put the 2016 yield at 52.8 bu. per acre, up from the USDA’s last figure of 52.5, also a record high. Informa put soybean production at 4.381 billion bushels, just above the USDA’s last figure of 4.361 billion.
The USDA is scheduled to release updated estimates of the 2016 harvest on Jan. 12, 2017.
Informa officials had no comment on the figures.
