CBOT soybeans retreat on US-China tensions

• The benchmark CBOT July soybean contract failed to break through chart resistance at its 50-day moving average, a key technical level it has not broken through since mid-January.
• Soymeal futures touched a 12-1/2-month low during the session but closed higher. Soyoil futures declined for the first time in three sessions.

CHICAGO: US soybean futures eased on Thursday on rising tensions between the United States and top soy importer China and expectations for some unplanted corn fields to be shifted into soy production.

The benchmark CBOT July soybean contract failed to break through chart resistance at its 50-day moving average, a key technical level it has not broken through since mid-January.

Soymeal futures touched a 12-1/2-month low during the session but closed higher. Soyoil futures declined for the first time in three sessions.

Rising US-China tensions, and recent Brazilian soy purchases by Chinese crushers, weighed on soybeans.

Corn planting delays in some parts of the US Midwest are expected to trigger a shift of some acres to the cultivation of soybeans, which can be planted later in the spring.