PARIS/SINGAPORE: Chicago corn futures edged up on Thursday as the market steadied after falling for five consecutive sessions on ideal crop weather, with some investors opting to cover positions in the run-up to closely watched US grain forecasts.
Soybeans, which like corn have been pressured by increasing expectations of a bumper harvest this year, also rebounded slightly, gaining additional support from record Chinese imports of the oilseed last month.
Chicago wheat ticked higher after dropping to its lowest level since June 2012 in the previous session under pressure from corn and slowing export demand.
"Investors in the corn market are covering shorts right now as US corn is oversold and there is potential for upside," said Kaname Gokon, deputy general manager at Tokyo-based Okato Shoji Co.
Chicago Board of Trade new-crop December corn rose 0.9 percent to $4.62-1/2 a bushel by 1137 GMT, while spot corn added 1.0 percent to $4.73. Both prices sank to their lowest levels since October 2010 earlier this week.
CBOT November soybeans gained 1.0 percent to $11.77-1/4 a bushel. Front-month prices rose 0.85 percent to $13.39 to pull away from a Wednesday's low of $13.13-3/4, a level not seen previously since March 2012.
The approaching monthly supply-and-demand report from the US Department of Agriculture, due to be published at 1600 GMT on Monday, was encouraging a cautious tone in the market.
Operators will be watching to see if the US government goes along with recent positive assessments of the corn crop.
Corn and soybean fields in east-central Iowa were in good condition and on track for above-average yields, but late plantings could push back the harvest by a few days, surveyors on the final day of an annual crop tour found.
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