CHICAGO, July 11 (Reuters) - The forecast turned wetter for parts of the U.S. Midwest, with rain expected in Illinois and other areas east of the Mississippi River this weekend, Commodity Weather Group stated in a note to clients on Wednesday.
Some showers were predicted for North and South Dakota and western Minnesota by Friday.
"This could trim down dry spots a bit, but about half of the Midwest would maintain significant moisture deficits," the note said.
An upper air disturbance boosted the chance for rain late this week and into the weekend, the forecaster stated.
The midday run of a major U.S. weather forecasting model, the Global Forecast System (GFS), indicated additional rain for the Corn Belt next week, a factor that helped pressure corn and soybean futures on the Chicago Board of Trade.
"The latest idea from GFS is for amounts of 0.5 to 1 inch (1 to 2.5 cm) w idespread, with some inch-plus amounts scattered in as well," said John Dee of Global Weather Monitoring.
T he model suggested the showers would cover 85 percent of the Midwest in the six- to 10-day period, said Dee, adding, "I t's the six- to-10 day, so it's not something you would etch in stone."
Corn and soybean crops throughout the Midwest suffered a drought during the past month that has severely cut harvest expectations.
Futures prices have soared as crop conditions have worsened, with corn up 37 percent and soybeans up 23 percent since the start of June.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture on Wednesday slashed its forecast of the U.S. 2012 corn yield to 146 bushels per acre, from 166 in June, and cut its 2012 soybean yield estimate to 40.5 bushels per acre, from 43.9 bu shels per acres pr eviously.
CBOT corn and soybeans initially rose on the news but later fell on profit-taking and ideas traders had already factored steep yield cuts into the market.
Temperatures were expected to rise during the next few days, topping out in the upper 90s to low 100s degrees Fahrenheit in western growing areas during the weekend. Cooler conditions were expected in the 11- to 15-day forecast, with temperatures in the mid-80s to mid-90s.
Commodity Weather Group also said some showers were expected in Ohio and Indiana during the 6- to 15-day period.
The region remained mostly dry on Tuesday, but some isolated showers were reported in central Illinois overnight.
