# U.S. Grain Shipping Costs Soar With War and Drought Swinging Demand

> Grain shipping costs on the Mississippi River have surged to an almost eight-year high as importers, including China, turn to U.S. soybeans and corn. Dry weather in Brazil and Russia's invasion of Ukraine, which has halted Black Sea corn shipments, drive the demand shift. Barge rates at St. Louis reached $34.75 per short ton, the highest since 2014.

- Date: 2022-03-18 · published 2022-03-18T12:00:00.000Z
- Category: logistics · region US · magnitude medium
- Page: https://feedsoft.ai/events/42459-u-s-grain-shipping-costs-soar-with-war-and-drought-swinging-demand
- 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

Higher barge freight raises the delivered cost of U.S. grain and meal to Gulf export terminals and inland feed buyers, supporting domestic corn and soybean basis and feed costs. Elevated water levels also cut barge loads by about 15%, tightening capacity further.

## Read by commodity

- SOY: bullish ▲
- CORN: bullish ▲
- BARGE: bullish ▲

## Similar past events

| Commodity | Date | Event | 5-day % | 20-day % |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| CORN | 2021-11-19 | [Grain Shipping Costs Start to Ease](https://feedsoft.ai/events/43961-grain-shipping-costs-start-to-ease.md) | +1.5% | +4.4% |
| CORN | 2022-06-28 | [War in Ukraine raises global shipping costs, stifles trade \| UN Trade and Development (UNCTAD)](https://feedsoft.ai/events/40842-war-in-ukraine-raises-global-shipping-costs-stifles-trade-un-trade-and.md) | +4.0% | -16.7% |
| CORN | 2024-12-19 | [US grain exports are boosting demand for barge and rail transportation](https://feedsoft.ai/events/27130-us-grain-exports-are-boosting-demand-for-barge-and-rail-transportation.md) | +2.0% | +7.4% |
| CORN | 2024-10-23 | [Freight rates for grain transportation continue to rise \| Ukrainian and World Shipping News - Ukrainian Shipping Magazine - Ukrainian and World Shipping News](https://feedsoft.ai/events/28066-freight-rates-for-grain-transportation-continue-to-rise-ukrainian-and-world.md) | -0.6% | +0.9% |
| CORN | 2017-01-30 | [Low water levels hamper Rhine and Danube shipping in Germany](https://feedsoft.ai/events/72900-low-water-levels-hamper-rhine-and-danube-shipping-in-germany.md) | +2.0% | +1.2% |
| SOY | 2021-11-19 | [Grain Shipping Costs Start to Ease](https://feedsoft.ai/events/43961-grain-shipping-costs-start-to-ease.md) | -1.0% | +1.6% |
| SOY | 2022-04-28 | [Labor issues, idle trains leave U.S. grain and food stranded -shippers](https://feedsoft.ai/events/41856-labor-issues-idle-trains-leave-u-s-grain-and-food-stranded-shippers.md) | -3.3% | -2.6% |
| SOY | 2021-04-22 | [Neopanamax Locks Have Expanded Shipping Routes \| Feed & Grain](https://feedsoft.ai/events/47487-neopanamax-locks-have-expanded-shipping-routes-feed-and-grain.md) | +4.0% | +2.7% |

## Sources

- gcaptain.com: https://gcaptain.com/united-states-grain-shipping-costs-war-drought/

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