WASHINGTON, July 5: The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s weekly national crop progress report showed that the U.S. soybean good-to-excellent rate was 2 percentage points lower than a week earlier, exceeding market expectations for a decline.

In the 18 states that account for 96% of the country’s soybean planting area, as of July 3 (Sunday), the US soybean emergence rate was 96%, 91% last week, 98% last year, and a five-year average of 96%.

The soybean flowering rate was 16%, 7% last week, 27% in the same period last year, and the five-year average was 22%.

The soybean pod setting rate for this year, announced for the first time this week, is 3%, compared with 3% in the same period last year and the five-year average of 3%.

The soybean good-to-excellent rate was 63%, 65% last week, and 59% last year. Analysts on average expected a good-to-good rate of 64%.

The ratio of soybean ratings this week is 9% excellent, 54% good, 28% fair, 7% poor, and 2% bad; last week, 10% was excellent, 55% good, 27% fair, 6% poor, and 2% bad; last year In the same period, it was excellent by 10%, good by 49%, average by 30%, poor by 8%, and poor by 2%.