Source: Todd Hobbs, FARM DOC DAILY, UNIV. OF ILLINOIS, 1/9/17


The U.S. ethanol industry ended 2016 on a high note. Ethanol production for the week ending December 30 set a new ethanol production record with an average of 1.043 million barrels per day. The March futures price for corn moved higher last week to close at $3.58 in large part due to strength in the ethanol sector. Ethanol production and exports returned strong numbers over the first quarter of the marketing year. Currently, the WASDE forecast for corn consumption for ethanol production is 5.3 billion bushels. When taking into account an increase in projected gasoline consumption in 2017 and robust ethanol export levels, the ability to surpass this projection is a strong possibility.

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