MINNEAPOLIS — Despite the drought that parched much of the rest of the country, 2012 is shaping up as a pleasant surprise for many Minnesota farmers who are expected to harvest record corn and sugarbeet crops.

They report decent corn and soybean yields even in southern counties that are deep in drought. Farmers say the combination of good spring rain and some timely precipitation in July and August saved their crops. And they’re profiting from high prices caused by the drought’s ravages in states like Iowa, Nebraska, Illinois and Indiana.

“It went better than we thought it would — by a long ways — that’s for sure,” southwestern Minnesota corn and soybean farmer Scott Johnson said with a laugh.

Minnesota farmers expect to harvest a record 1.39 billion bushels of corn, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s estimates released Thursday.