Slow U.S. wheat planting raises commodities prices, farm income

Adverse weather around the world in this past year has boosted wheat prices.
Adverse weather around the world in this past year has boosted wheat prices.
Soaring wheat futures due to inclement weather in the U.S.'s breadbasket - the Midwest - follows a trend that started last year with weather-affected harvests in the former Soviet Union and Canada, Bloomberg reported.

Kansas, which ranks second in the U.S. in terms of wheat output, has seen this year's crop hit by drought. As a result, reported the news source, the state's planting of wheat this past winter season looked to be the least productive in 15 years - as of late April. As the U.S. is the largest exporter of the grain and is projected to lose inventories this year, world production may also fall, the International Grains Council forecasts.

In South America, however, Brazil and Argentina have recently experienced better weather, and Russia appears ready to recover from last year's crop shortfall, Agriculture.com notes.

As farming revenue is predicted to increase to a record level this year, agricultural workers may have more income to reinvest in farm equipment, which can be purchased from their local John Deere dealer. Combine harvesters and tractors are just two of many John Deere products that are available.