# Maize: Stocks

Why China's giant reserves rarely reach the world market

Source page: https://www.materialinsights.org/commodities/maize/stocks/

Why China's giant reserves rarely reach the world market What this tab covers How much is left and how much is held. For minerals and energy: reserves, current output, years of supply and recycling for the top five countries. For farm commodities: production, ending stocks and stocks-to-use for the top five producers (USDA, October 2026). It also covers inventories and stockpiles.

#### Top five producers: production and stocks (USDA, 2026/27)

| Country | Production | Share | Ending stocks | Stocks-to-use |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| **United States** | 407,300 | 31.5% | 46,970 | 11.3% |
| **China** | 307,000 | 23.7% | 165,100 | 51% |
| **Brazil** | 139,000 | 10.7% | 10,600 | 7.3% |
| **Argentina** | 55,000 | 4.3% | 5,012 | 9% |
| **India** | 50,000 | 3.9% | 4,397 | 8.2% |
| **World** | 1,294,000 | 100% | 280,400 | 21.4% |

 thousand t. Stocks-to-use = ending stocks ÷ (domestic use + exports) for countries, ÷ world use for the world. Source: USDA FAS PSD database, October 2026 release; 2026/27 figures are projections.

#### Stockholding and policy

China holds 177.2 Mt, about 58% of world maize stocks at end-2025/26 (USDA WASDE, Oct 2026), mostly in state and processor hands; its temporary reserve buying (2008-2016) built huge stocks before being replaced by direct payments in 2016. China imports within a 7.2 Mt tariff-rate quota. India keeps no central-pool maize buffer: FCI buffer norms cover only rice and wheat. India's maize MSP is Rs 2,400/quintal for 2025-26 and Rs 2,410 for 2026-27 (Cabinet, 13 May 2026), but state procurement is small; NAFED and NCCF buy some maize for ethanol distilleries. The US and Brazil hold no public reserves, so stocks are commercial.

Dried maize keeps for years, so carry-over stocks are the buffer between harvests. USDA's October 2026 WASDE puts world ending stocks for 2025/26 at 307 Mt, a stocks-to-use ratio of 23.3%, little changed from 23.6% in 2024/25. China holds 177 Mt of that, about 58%, mostly state reserves that rarely reach the world market. Outside China only about 130 Mt remains, so the headline ratio overstates the cushion available to importers. Geman notes the ratio normally sits between 20% and 40%, and that near the bottom of that band any supply shock sends prices sharply higher (pdf p. 155).

#### World stocks (USDA)

| Season | Production | Use | Ending stocks | Stocks-to-use | of which China |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024/25 | 1235 | 1253 | 295.6 | 23.6% | 65% |
| 2025/26 Est. | 1331 | 1319 | 307.2 | 23.3% | 58% |

 million t. USDA WASDE, 10 October 2026. The 2026/27 projections were blank in this release.

## Other sections

- [Summary](https://www.materialinsights.org/commodities/maize/index.md)
- [Overview](https://www.materialinsights.org/commodities/maize/overview/index.md)
- [Correlation](https://www.materialinsights.org/commodities/maize/correlation/index.md)
- [Extraction](https://www.materialinsights.org/commodities/maize/extraction/index.md)
- [Production](https://www.materialinsights.org/commodities/maize/production/index.md)
- [Cycles](https://www.materialinsights.org/commodities/maize/cycles/index.md)
- [Trading](https://www.materialinsights.org/commodities/maize/trading/index.md)
- [Movement](https://www.materialinsights.org/commodities/maize/movement/index.md)
- [Criticality](https://www.materialinsights.org/commodities/maize/criticality/index.md)
- [Characteristics](https://www.materialinsights.org/commodities/maize/characteristics/index.md)
- [Emissions](https://www.materialinsights.org/commodities/maize/emissions/index.md)
- [Relationships](https://www.materialinsights.org/commodities/maize/links/index.md)