# Winter's Warm Start Dries Out Mississippi Basin: Evaporative Demand and Low Flows Threaten U.S. Ag Transport Corridor - Agrolatam

> NOAA drought monitoring shows an unusually warm December and high evaporative demand have dried much of the southern and lower Mississippi basin, lowering river levels. December 2025 ranked as the 12th driest in 131 years of data in the lower basin, with the warmest-on-record conditions driving flash drought risk. Northern reaches were near normal or wetter.

- Date: 2026-01-20 · published 2026-01-20T12:00:00.000Z
- Category: weather · region US · magnitude medium
- Page: https://feedsoft.ai/events/16397-winter-s-warm-start-dries-out-mississippi-basin-evaporative-demand-and-low
- Commodities: [Barge Freight (St. Louis)](https://feedsoft.ai/c/BARGE.md), [Corn](https://feedsoft.ai/c/CORN.md), [Soybeans](https://feedsoft.ai/c/SOY.md)

## Why it matters

Below-median river levels constrain barge loading and raise freight costs on the system that moves a large share of US grain, which lowers interior prices relative to export values.

## Read by commodity

- SOY: bearish ▼
- CORN: bearish ▼
- BARGE: bullish ▲

## Similar past events

| Commodity | Date | Event | 5-day % | 20-day % |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| CORN | 2026-10-22 | [Water Levels on Lower Mississippi River Starting to Run Low Again](https://feedsoft.ai/events/16332-water-levels-on-lower-mississippi-river-starting-to-run-low-again.md) | -1.2% | — |
| CORN | 2025-10-21 | [Low Soil Moisture Makes It Difficult to Use Mississippi River for Shipping Grain and Supplies](https://feedsoft.ai/events/16419-low-soil-moisture-makes-it-difficult-to-use-mississippi-river-for-shipping.md) | +1.0% | +4.0% |
| CORN | 2024-01-29 | [U.S. grains: Soy hits 2-yr lows on South American crop prospects, demand worries - Manitoba Co-operator](https://feedsoft.ai/events/6842-u-s-grains-soy-hits-2-yr-lows-on-south-american-crop-prospects-demand-worries.md) | -0.7% | -7.2% |
| CORN | 2023-11-12 | [Historically low water levels on the Mississippi River cause shipping woes \| PBS News Weekend](https://feedsoft.ai/events/16587-historically-low-water-levels-on-the-mississippi-river-cause-shipping-woes-pbs.md) | -0.5% | -1.7% |
| CORN | 2024-02-07 | [Corn, soybeans touch new multi-year lows on grain glut worries  - The Globe and Mail](https://feedsoft.ai/events/7198-corn-soybeans-touch-new-multi-year-lows-on-grain-glut-worries-the-globe-and-mail.md) | -1.1% | +0.3% |
| SOY | 2026-10-22 | [Water Levels on Lower Mississippi River Starting to Run Low Again](https://feedsoft.ai/events/16332-water-levels-on-lower-mississippi-river-starting-to-run-low-again.md) | -2.3% | — |
| SOY | 2025-04-01 | [Estimating the Impact of Low Mississippi River Levels on Soybean Basis in the Midsouth \| Agriculture of America](https://feedsoft.ai/events/16456-estimating-the-impact-of-low-mississippi-river-levels-on-soybean-basis-in-the.md) | -3.1% | +2.6% |
| SOY | 2025-10-21 | [Low Soil Moisture Makes It Difficult to Use Mississippi River for Shipping Grain and Supplies](https://feedsoft.ai/events/16419-low-soil-moisture-makes-it-difficult-to-use-mississippi-river-for-shipping.md) | +3.4% | +12.2% |

## Sources

- agrolatam.com: https://www.agrolatam.com/usa/weather/winter-2026-mississippi-basin-drying-agriculture/

---
Data from Feedsoft AI (https://feedsoft.ai/). For information only; not investment advice.