Export sales of corn increased in the latest week, beating trade forecasts and topping the pace needed to meet the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s annual forecast, while old-crop soybean sales eased in the latest week but matched forecasts and easily topped USDA’s projected weekly pace.

Wheat sales were lower, with old-crop sales missing USDA’s projected weekly pace, but the numbers were within trade forecasts.

Old-crop corn sales of 49.4 million bu. were up 69% from the previous week, with Mexico, Japan and Colombia as the leading buyers.  New-crop sales of 8.6 million bu. also were up for the week and beat trade forecasts in a Reuters poll, with Mexico, Panama and unknown destinations as the top buyers.

In daily reporting on Thursday, USDA said 4.41 million bu. of 2016-17 hard red winter wheat were sold to Algeria, and 4.41 million bu. of 2016-17 soybeans went to unknown destinations. Those sales will be included in a future weekly report.

Old-crop soybean sales in USDA’s weekly export report of 17.3 million bu. were down slightly for the week, with China, Germany and Netherlands the top markets. There were 8.3 million bu. in new-crop sales, which went to unknown destinations, Japan and Mexico.

Weekly wheat sales of 9.7 million bu. were down 33% from a week ago and were led by Mexico, China and Indonesia. About 2.7 million bu. were 2017-18 sales and were led by Jamaica, the Philippines and Belize.

In the Chicago, Ill., futures' overnight session, corn, soybean and wheat futures had little reaction to the exports. At the end of that session, May corn was up 2.25 cents and July was up 2.5 cents/bu. May soybeans were up 7.25 cents and July up 7 cents/bu.

Chicago Board of Trade May soft red winter wheat futures closed the overnight session up 2.25 cents, and was July up 1.75 cents/bu. Kansas City, Mo., May and July hard red winter wheat were each up 3 cents/bu. Spring wheat for May was up 5 cents and July up 3.75 cents.

Soybean meal export sales of 389,500 metric tons were up 30% from the previous week and beat trade forecasts, with the Philippines, Colombia and Vietnam as the leading buyers. New-crop sales of 4,300 mt went to Panama.

Soybean oil had a net reduction of 35,800 mt as cancellations exceeded sales. Mexico, South Korea and Canada led buyers, while the Dominican Republic, unknown destinations and Colombia cancelled. New-crop sales of 1,200 mt went to Mexico.

Sorghum sales of nearly 630,000 bu. were down sharply from the prior week, with China, Japan and Mexico as the leading buyers.