Argentina's wheat crop benefited from record rains

 Argentina's 2012/13 wheat crop benefited from record rains in August although some flooding has hurt plants in key areas, the Agriculture Ministry said on Friday in its weekly crop report. Argentina is the world's No 6 wheat exporter and the top supplier to neighbouring Brazil. Government officials estimate production this season at 12.5 million tonnes, which would translate into about 6 million tonnes of exports under government trade caps.

August's plentiful rains not only benefited wheat; they also contributed to moist soils as Argentine farmers start sowing corn and prepare to seed soybeans. In Buenos Aires province, the country's top wheat-growing region, crop conditions vary. In Pehuajo, conditions are excellent, while in Tres Arroyos and 25 de Mayo, flooded fields could be hiding losses, the ministry report said.

By Thursday, farmers had planted 97 percent of the 3.7 million hectares estimated for wheat this season, showing no progress from a week earlier and lagging 3 percentage points behind last season's pace. The US Department of Agriculture forecasts Argentina's 2012/13 wheat output at 11.5 million tonnes, down from 15 million tonnes in the previous crop year.

The Agriculture Ministry said farmers have begun seeding 2012/13 corn in some parts of Santa Fe province, one of the biggest corn-growing regions in the country. Many grains experts are forecasting record corn production in the coming season due to expectations for wet weather. Corn area is seen falling from last season, however, due to farmers' financial difficulties after a tough, drought-battered harvest. Farmers just finished gathering the 2011/12 corn crop, which totalled 21 million tonnes, according to the government. The USDA foresees Argentine corn production of 28 million tonnes in the 2012/13 crop year. 

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