CHICAGO: US soyabean futures hit a three-week high on Tuesday on optimism that top global soya buyer China will continue buying US supplies, despite expectations that purchases will be halted because of a dispute with the United States over Hong Kong.
Wheat futures fell as the US winter wheat harvest got rolling while corn was little changed.
As of 12:19 p.m. CDT (1719 GMT), Chicago Board of Trade July soyabeans were up 10-1/2 cents at $8.51 a bushel after reaching $8.56, the contract's highest since May 12.
CBOT July wheat was down 6-1/2 cents at $5.08-3/4 a bushel and July corn was up 1/4 cent at $3.23-1/2 a bushel.
Soyabean futures firmed on export optimism after the US Department of Agriculture confirmed sales of 132,000 tonnes of US soyabeans to China, even though China has told state-owned firms to halt US soya purchases due to a dispute with the United States over China's actions in Hong Kong.
"We got confirmation of (soya export) business, and we do have indications there is more demand around," said Terry Linn, analyst with Linn & Associates in Chicago, adding that US soyabeans are cheaper than supplies from Brazil, the world's No. 1 supplier.
"We are competitive ... So we should see more business pick up here, and not just to China," Linn said.
Commerzbank said: "It cannot yet be ruled out that the actions by the Chinese are not much more than sabre-rattling."
Wheat futures declined as traders shifted their focus to the start of the US harvest, which was 3% complete by Sunday, just ahead of the 2% five-year average.
"Wheat is weakened by favourable weather in the US as the harvest starts and recent rain in the Black Sea and Europe which has helped stabilise crops," said Matt Ammermann, commodity risk manager with INTL FCStone.
Corn futures edged higher. Commodity funds hold a large net short position in CBOT corn futures, leaving the market vulnerable to bouts of short-covering. US crop weather was generally favorable for corn and soya. The USDA said planting progress reached 93% for corn and 75% for soyabeans, both ahead of their respective five-year averages.
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