Things are looking up for farmers as harvest gets underway — at least for those outside the areas hit by a severe storm called a derecho in early August — thanks to a mix of increased demand from China and the misfortune of farmers in other states.

Corn and soybean prices are both up by about a fifth since early August and the hog rally has been even more pronounced.

The biggest reason corn and soybean prices have rallied is that China is purchasing more of them from the U.S. in recent weeks. Tuesday marked the 13th straight business day in which China bought U.S. soybeans.

“Their economy is rebounding from the pandemic is what we’re told, and more importantly their swine herd is rebounding from the African swine fever,” Anderson said.

Chinese demand for soybeans, in large part to feed hogs, makes the country the largest customer of U.S. soybean producers.