Fertilizers (POT) (SYT) (MOS) (SMG) (CF) Pressured on Weak Crop Prices

Potash Corp (NYSE:POT), Syngenta (NYSE:SYT), Mosaic (NYSE:MOS), Scotts Miracle-Gro (NYSE:SMG) and CF Industries (NYSE:CF) traded down Friday, with the exception of Potash, as a down week for major crops pressured the sector.

Corn and wheat finished down last week while soybeans were almost unchanged. A bearish USDA report weighed on the grains. Eventually the weather, flooding of the Mississippi and lack of activity in the fields will probably push up the prices of grains in the weeks ahead.

Corn futures for July-delivery climbed 6.5 cents, or 1 percent, to $6.87 a bushel on the Chicago Board of Trade. The price was down a little last week after dropping by the limit of 30 cents on May 11 when a U.S. report said inventories will be larger than analysts estimated.

Wheat for July delivery gained 8.5 cents, or 1.2 percent, to $7.44 a bushel in Chicago. The contract fell 2 percent last week, the third straight week of losses, after the government projected stockpiles in 2012 to be higher than expected.

Soybeans for July delivery rose 9 cents, or 0.7 percent, to $13.5175 a bushel in Chicago after gaining 0.8 percent Thursday. The oilseed was up slightly on the week, gaining 1.9 percent.

Potash closed Friday at $51.58, gaining $0.49, or 0.96 percent.