Rain, warm weather could spark Midwest flood

CHICAGO (Reuters) - Rains and warmer weather this week could trigger flooding in portions of the Midwest grain belt, prompting concerns of delays to field work ahead of seeding the corn and soy crops, a forecaster said on Monday.

Farmers in top grain states like Iowa and Illinois normally begin planting their corn and soybean crops in April.

"This is the beginning of flood season. The snow is melting and rain is expected to fall on top it," said Mike Palmerino, a forecaster at DTN Telvent in Boston.

"The soils are already saturated and they can not absorb much more moisture into the ground," he said.

Heavy snowfall across much of the United States this winter has raised the risk of springtime floods and planting delays.

The worst flooding in the Midwest in decades in 2008 helped to propel grain prices to record highs that year.

The National Weather Service issued a flood warning for areas along the eastern border of Iowa and the western border of Illinois near the Wapsipinicon and Skunk rivers, tributary rivers of the Mississippi River.

No flooding has occurred yet but minor to moderate flooding is forecast, the NWS said.

Over the weekend 0.10 to 0.5 inch of rain fell in the western Corn Belt. Light rain will continue on Monday with 0.5 to 1.5 inches expected to fall Tuesday through Friday across the U.S. Midwest.

Temperatures are expected to range between 40 and 50 degrees Fahrenheit (4 to 10 Celsius).

"Just like the last couple of years producers are going to struggle to get field work and planting done," Palmerino said.

Planting in top corn and soybean states like Iowa and Illinois typically does not begin until mid-April, but grain traders are already starting to monitor long-term weather outlooks.

The wet weather and possible flooding will be a bullish factor for grains prices, said Jack Scoville, senior analyst at The Price Futures Group in Chicago.

"Its only March, but the problem is last Fall producers got little field work done and a lot of precipitation will not help getting into in the fields in a timely manner," Scoville said.

At the Chicago Board of Trade soybean futures were lifted by firm crude oil, weak dollar and short-covering after the price declines late last week. Meanwhile, corn futures were technically weak and below all key moving averages and the abundant supply of feed grains weighed.

(Reporting by Meredith Davis; Additional reporting by Naveen Thukral in Singapore; Editing by David Gregorio)