CME (CME.US) plans to launch sorghum margin futures and is expected to be listed on August 24

The Zhitong Finance App learned that on July 29, CME (CME.US), the world's largest derivatives exchange, announced plans to launch sorghum margin futures. The new product is expected to be launched on August 24, 2026, and is yet to be approved by regulators.

Sorghum is a widely used commodity that can meet demand from the US domestic feed industry, international export markets, and the biofuel sector that has emerged in recent years.

This new basis contract reflects the price difference between sorghum and corn. Both types of grains can be used as animal feed and as raw materials for the production of ethanol. Sorghum's rise in water compared to corn usually indicates that international demand is driving up prices. If sorghum is much more water-soluble than corn, it will cause buyers in the US to adjust feed formulations and switch to lower-priced sorghum.

John Ricci, managing director and head of global agricultural products at CME, said, “Although the price trend of sorghum is usually highly consistent with corn over a long macroeconomic cycle, geographical conflicts and regional supply changes may break this price linkage. In recent years, the spot price difference between sorghum and corn has fluctuated drastically, continuously changing from large litres of water to deep watering. Sorghum basis futures contracts will provide market participants with accurate tools to hedge against these base difference risks.”

The contract will use physical delivery methods. Relying on the mature Kansas City hard red winter wheat delivery system, the granary network in Kansas, the largest producer of sorghum in the United States, the largest producer of sorghum in the United States, the delivery of grain is completed by truck or rail.

In the second quarter of 2026, CME's agricultural products trading volume reached a record 2.1 million contracts. Among them, the number of open corn futures and options contracts reached 4.1 million, a record high. The average quarterly daily trading volume was 695,000 contracts, the second highest level in history.