Ending stocks

Ending stocks are the quantity of a crop left unsold and unused at the close of its marketing year, carried forward as the starting inventory for the next one.

Ending stocks are whatever is left of a crop’s supply once a marketing year closes: everything produced or imported during the year, minus everything consumed, exported, or otherwise used, leaves this amount sitting in bins, silos, and warehouses. It becomes the starting point, or carryover, for the following year.

Ending stocks matter far more in relation to how much the crop is used than as a raw number, which is why analysts convert them into the stocks-to-use ratio before drawing conclusions about tightness or surplus. A large harvest can still leave thin ending stocks if consumption grew even faster, while a smaller harvest can leave comfortable stocks if demand fell. The WASDE report publishes ending stock estimates for major US crops each month, and revisions to that number are closely watched.