The Price Patterns of 2024 Worked Again in 2025

Will the same patterns work in 2026?

- By Al Kluis

This past March, I spoke at the Commodity Classic conference in Denver for Successful Farming. My presentation highlighted how the price patterns for corn and soybeans in 2025 could be very similar to 2024. I recommended earlier seasonal selling dates, and highlighted some key weeks to watch for a change of trend — as well as the importance of avoiding sales in August. The main recommendation was to get new-crop corn, soybeans, and wheat protected in April, May, and June with a combination of hedges, forward contracts, and puts. Did my predictions work? Let's take a look, starting with a recap of 2024.

Corn

In 2024, the nearby corn futures rallied to a high ($4.62) in January. (Note that December 2024 corn futures also peaked in January, at $4.95.) Nearby corn futures then pulled back to the February low ($3.94). The May high came in at $4.70; then, corn prices turned lower and kept moving downward until the low ($3.60) in August. Prices then rallied into October and November, peaking at $4.29. In 2025, the nearby corn futures put in a high ($5.04) in early February. (The December 2025 corn contract also put in a high in February, at $4.79.) Nearby corn futures dropped to a March low ($4.26), then rallied to $4.69 before dropping to the August low ($3.69). The February high for corn futures was highly unusual. Farmers did not have a second opportunity to sell on any weather scare rally in 2025.

Soybeans