The U.S. soybean crush likely fell in January to 5.897 million short tons, or 196.6 million bushels, as extreme winter weather impeded operations at some facilities, according to analysts surveyed by Reuters ahead of a monthly U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) report.
If the estimate, gathered from eight analysts, is realized, it would be down 3.8% from the record 204.3 million bushels crushed in December but up 2.8% from the January 2023 crush of 191.1 million bushels.
It would also be the largest January crush on record, narrowly topping the 196.5 million bushels processed in the first month of 2021, according to USDA data.
U.S. soybean processing has expanded considerably in recent years, propelled by rising demand for vegetable oils to produce biofuel.
The monthly crush had exceeded 200 million bushels for three straight months before the drop in January, as a mid-month cold snap disrupted truck and rail transportation and slowed operations at several plants, analysts said.
Crush estimates ranged from 194.2 million to 199.0 million bushels, with a median of 196.8 million bushels.
The USDA is scheduled to release its monthly fats and oils report at 2 p.m. CST (2000 GMT) on Friday.
U.S. soyoil stocks as of Jan. 31 were estimated at 1.982 billion pounds based on the average of estimates from five analysts.
If realized, the stocks would be up 8.7% from 1.824 billion pounds at the end of December but down 15.9% from stocks totaling 2.356 billion pounds at the end of January 2023.
Estimates ranged from 1.900 billion to 2.027 billion pounds, with a median of 2.000 billion pounds.
The National Oilseed Processors Association reported that its members, which account for about 95% of the U.S. soy crush, processed 185.780 million bushels in January, while end-of-month oil stocks rose to 1.507 billion pounds.