Soybeans edge up after decline, harvest pressure caps gains

SINGAPORE: Chicago soybean futures ticked higher on Tuesday as the market took a breather following last session's biggest one-day decline in six weeks, although expectations of a rapid US harvest limited gains.

Wheat rose for a second day, underpinned by short-covering and positioning ahead of a US crop report due on Friday.

The Chicago Board Of Trade's most-active soybean contract edged up 0.3 percent to $9.73-3/4 a bushel by 0210 GMT after Monday's 1.3 percent decline, the biggest daily loss since Aug. 15.

Wheat rose 0.3 percent to $4.55-1/2 a bushel, having closed up 1 percent on Monday and corn gained 0.1 percent to $3.54 a bushel.

After the market closed on Monday, the US Department of Agriculture said 11 percent of the US corn crop has been harvested as of Sept. 24, behind market expectations of 14 percent.

It said 10 percent of the US soybean crop had been harvested, close to the five-year average of 12 percent by this time of the year.

Going forward, there are expectations of a rapid pickup in the pace of the US harvest.

Unseasonably hot US weather is accelerating corn and soybean crop maturity after months of concerns that lagging development could drag down yields or put some late-planted acres at risk of damage from frost, agronomists and analysts said.

Soybean prices are under additional pressure from a forecast of improved weather in Brazil.

"Weather forecasters have revised their outlook for Brazil's driest soybean regions," said Tobin Gorey, director of agricultural strategy at Commonwealth Bank of Australia.

"The forecasters were expecting continued dry conditions. Now that has evolved to a somewhat wetter outlook. The forecast rainfall is modest so the market will continue to worry about delayed planting for a while yet."

In the wheat market, traders are squaring positions ahead of the USDA's small grains and quarterly stocks reports due on Friday.

Russian wheat export prices rose last week, supported by higher global benchmarks and strong demand from buyers.

Black Sea prices for Russian wheat with 12.5 percent protein content and September delivery were at $189 a tonne on a free-on-board (FOB) basis at the end of last week, up from $185 a week earlier, agriculture consultancy IKAR said.

Commodity funds were net sellers of CBOT soybean, soymeal and soyoil futures contracts on Monday and were net buyers of corn and wheat.