Washington, Jul 1 (IANS): A new study has revealed that an estimated 70 per cent of the corn crop and 63 per cent of soybeans across the US have been affected by an ongoing drought.

The study was published by the US National Drought Mitigation Center which keeps track of the percentage of growing area affected by drought,reports Xinhua news agency.

Last week, 64 per cent of corn and 57 per cent of soybeans were impacted by drought, it said.

This week's updated look showed a six percentage point expansion for both corn and soybeans, according to the report.

Even with rains sweeping the Northern Corn Belt last weekend, the latest drought monitor shows that drought continues to spread across Illinois.

Missouri is also seeing the impacts of drought take a toll across the state, according to the report.

Heavy rain that hit parts of Ohio and Kentucky did improve long-term drought, but much of the region also saw conditions worsen, including in central Indiana, Illinois, Missouri, southwest Wisconsin, southeast Minnesota and southeast Iowa, the report added.