Basis: the local part of your price

Cash price = futures + basis. Basis is your local market's adjustment for freight, demand and storage, and it moves separately from futures.

Your cash price has two parts: the futures price, set in Chicago or Kansas City, and basis, which is your local market's difference from it. If December corn futures are $4.40 and your elevator bids $4.05, basis is 35 cents under ($-0.35).

Basis reflects freight to where grain is needed, local supply and demand, and storage space. It's usually weakest at harvest when bins are full and trucks line up, and often strengthens later in the year.

Because basis and futures move separately, you can lock in one without the other. That's why contracts like HTAs and basis contracts exist (next lessons).

Track it: compare today's basis with the same week last year and the 3-year average on our basis pages.

Basis by state · Bids near me