Ethanol crush margins take a hit from higher corn prices

In Nebraska, DTN reports the crush margins on its hypothetical ethanol plant took a hit recently due to rising corn futures that were 54 cents per bushel higher than when last calculated in August at $3.79. The jump in corn prices pushed the crush margin into negative territory to a 7.6 cent per gallon loss if the plant was paying debt from 9.4 cents per gallon profit last month, but if it wasn’t carrying debt, it would have had a 24 cent per gallon profit, 17 cents less than in August.