Clear weather much of the week allowed for more harvesting with the U.S. corn harvest at 94% done as of Sunday, a 5-point jump from a week ago to put it 2 points above the five-year average, USDA said in its weekly crop progress report on Monday.

The soybean harvest improved 3 points to 97% done, just behind the 98% average.

This week's USDA crop condition report will be the final report for the season.

The corn and soybean harvest paces matched the averages in a wire service survey and were slightly ahead of what had been expected. USDA's 58% good to excellent rating on wheat was slightly lower than expectations.

In Iowa, the top corn and soybean producer, corn harvest jumped 4 points to 96% and is now slightly ahead of the 95% average. Harvest remained slow in Michigan and Wisconsin, the USDA crop progress report said, at 69% and 73% respectively, which compared with the 85% and 86% averages.

Iowa soybean harvest was at 99% harvested versus 100% a year ago and the average. Kentucky lagged the 5-year average the most at 87% versus the 96% average.

Winter wheat rating slips to 58% good/excellent

Winter wheat emergence was at 92% as of Sunday, the same as 2013 and topped the 89% average. Soft red winter wheat in Illinois was behind at 76% versus 97% a year ago and the 90% average. In Michigan, wheat was 86% emerged versus the 98% average.

There have been concerns that cold hurt the Midwest wheat and impeded emergence.

The winter wheat was rated 58% good to excellent in the USDA crop progress and condition report, down 2 points from a week ago and down from last year's 62%. Nebraska wheat had one of the largest drops going to 69% good to excellent from last week's 78%. Ohio's wheat slipped to 65% from 69% and Kansas eased to 61% from 62%.

Cotton 77% harvested, Sorghum at 88%The cotton harvest at 77% matched 2013's pace but trailed the 83% average.

Sorghum was 88% harvested versus 96% a year ago and the 91% average.

Source - http://farmfutures.com/