US wheat futures fell nearly 3 percent Monday on technical selling and wetter forecasts for the southern US Plains winter wheat belt this week that should boost crop development. "We're hearing a half-inch to 1-1/2 inches (2.5 cm) (of rain) today and tomorrow. That's a little more than what they were talking about on Friday," said Rich Nelson, analyst with Allendale Inc.
As well, data released by the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission late Friday indicated larger-than-expected sales of Chicago Board of Trade wheat futures by large speculators in the week ended March 13, a signal that prompted further selling on Monday, Nelson said. US corn and soyabean futures fell on profit-taking after the markets ran to multimonth highs on export demand and supply worries.
Bearish chart signals in all three grain markets added pressure, analysts said. In wheat, corn and soyabeans, the front contract months closed lower after notching an "outside day" - setting higher highs and lower lows than the previous session. The pattern could signal that the markets have peaked for the time being.
CBOT May wheat settled down 19-3/4 cents at $6.52-1/4 per bushel. May corn ended down 9-1/2 cents at $6.63-1/2 a bushel, retreating after reaching $6.75-3/4, the contract's highest level since November. Front-month May soyabean futures ended down 7-1/2 cents at $13.66-1/2 a bushel, reversing after reaching $13.78, the highest spot price since mid-September.
Corn and soyabeans faced pressure from softening cash markets amid scattered farmer sales and unseasonably mild weather that should favour an early start to corn planting in the United States, the world's biggest supplier. "Planting has started in the southern (Corn) Belt. It's just a field here and a field there, but it's an awakening - if we've got corn going in March, it's going to make for a pretty early harvest," said Karl Setzer, grains analyst with the MaxYield Co-operative in West Bend, Iowa.
Soyabean futures have rallied for five straight weeks on robust US exports, especially to top buyer China, amid lower supplies from drought-hit Brazil and Argentina. The market has also drawn support from worries that US farmers might not plant enough new-crop soyabeans this spring to meet global demand. Noncommercials, which include hedge funds, have been raising bullish bets in CBOT soyabeans and options. The CFTC's weekly data showed that noncommercials raised their net long positions in soyabeans for a sixth straight week to the largest in 13 months at 148,420 contracts.
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