# Barge Captain Shares River Level Update - Mid-West Farm Report

> A Mississippi River barge captain says low water levels are limiting barge loads to sometimes half of normal, raising freight costs and squeezing terminal margins. He also flagged a shortage of about 180,000 maritime workers as a future risk to commodity movement.

- Date: 2023-06-21 · published 2023-06-21T12:00:00.000Z
- Category: logistics · region US · magnitude medium
- Page: https://feedsoft.ai/events/16619-barge-captain-shares-river-level-update-mid-west-farm-report
- 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

Lighter barge loads raise per-ton freight costs, which lowers local cash bids for grain in upper Midwest origins and can build backlogs that delay shipments.

## Read by commodity

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

## Similar past events

| Commodity | Date | Event | 5-day % | 20-day % |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| CORN | 2024-04-08 | [Barge Captain Shares Views on Water Levels & Freight - Mid-West Farm Report](https://feedsoft.ai/events/16551-barge-captain-shares-views-on-water-levels-and-freight-mid-west-farm-report.md) | -1.2% | -1.0% |
| CORN | 2017-10-06 | [Report: Barge rates skyrocket amid Ohio, Mississippi river closures - FreightWaves](https://feedsoft.ai/events/6120-report-barge-rates-skyrocket-amid-ohio-mississippi-river-closures-freightwaves.md) | -0.4% | -0.8% |
| CORN | 2022-09-30 | [Low River Levels, Soaring Barge Freight Curb U.S. Grain Exports](https://feedsoft.ai/events/16682-low-river-levels-soaring-barge-freight-curb-u-s-grain-exports.md) | +1.0% | +3.8% |
| CORN | 2023-09-07 | [Barge rates pressured by low Mississippi River water levels \| Supply Chain Dive](https://feedsoft.ai/events/34291-barge-rates-pressured-by-low-mississippi-river-water-levels-supply-chain-dive.md) | -1.2% | -6.8% |
| CORN | 2024-09-09 | [Mississippi River restricts barges as water levels drop - DredgeWire : DredgeWire](https://feedsoft.ai/events/16511-mississippi-river-restricts-barges-as-water-levels-drop-dredgewire-dredgewire.md) | +1.0% | +4.9% |
| SOY | 2022-09-30 | [Low River Levels, Soaring Barge Freight Curb U.S. Grain Exports](https://feedsoft.ai/events/16682-low-river-levels-soaring-barge-freight-curb-u-s-grain-exports.md) | -3.7% | -2.0% |
| SOY | 2023-09-07 | [Barge rates pressured by low Mississippi River water levels \| Supply Chain Dive](https://feedsoft.ai/events/34291-barge-rates-pressured-by-low-mississippi-river-water-levels-supply-chain-dive.md) | -1.8% | -6.4% |
| SOY | 2024-09-09 | [Mississippi River restricts barges as water levels drop - DredgeWire : DredgeWire](https://feedsoft.ai/events/16511-mississippi-river-restricts-barges-as-water-levels-drop-dredgewire-dredgewire.md) | -0.3% | +4.9% |

## Sources

- midwestfarmreport.com: https://www.midwestfarmreport.com/2023/06/21/barge-captain-shares-river-level-update/

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