News

The Obama administration wants to save billions of dollars by putting new limits on farm subsidies and cutting back on government support for crop insurance companies, according to the fiscal year 2011 budget proposal released Monday by the White House.

Ukraine exported 14.9 million metric tons of grain harvested in 2009 between the beginning of the current marketing year July 1, 2009 and Jan. 25 this year, the Agriculture Ministry reported Wednesday.

Commodities may trail last year’s performance as China’s move to curb bank lending reduces demand, said Charl Malan, who helps manage $2.3 billion at Van Eck Global Hard Assets Fund.

Corn fell to a 12-week low on concern that record U.S. production will overwhelm global demand as China seeks to slow economic growth. Limits on lending in China sparked a rally in the dollar, sending crude oil to a five-week low and the Reuters-Jefferies CRB Index of 19 commodities down as much as 1.1 percent. On Jan. 12, the U.S. forecast record world production, signaling ample supplies for makers of livestock feed, sweeteners and ethanol.