US corn rebounds from 9-1/2 month low on bargain buying

US corn rebounded from a 9-1/2 month low on Monday on bargain buying after falling nearly 30 percent below the record high set just 3-1/2 months ago, with soybeans and wheat also edging higher. Battered grains rebounded in tandem with other commodities like copper and oil while shrugging off a rally in the dollar, which tends to blunt export competitiveness.
Soybeans also began recouping losses after falling to their lowest level in nearly a year and wheat turned up after crumbling to a three-month low as equities slipped some more after suffering their worst quarter since 2008 on concerns over Greece's teetering finances.
At 10:26 am CDT (1526 GMT), CBOT corn for December delivery was up 2 cents per bushel at $5.94-1/2, November soy was up 6 at $11.85 and December wheat was up 4-1/2 at $6.13-3/4. The bargain buying also helped ward off earlier pressure on each market from pristine harvest weather in the United States as farmers gather corn and soybean crops and the excellent conditions are expected to continue.
"Near perfect harvest weather for the next week or even 10 days, about as perfect as one could order up," said John Dee, meteorologist for Global Weather Monitoring. Dee said dry conditions and seasonal temperatures would allow US farmers to make rapid progress harvesting the 2011 corn and soybean crops.
The US Department of Agriculture will release its updated weekly crop progress report late on Monday. CBOT soft red winter wheat also turned up on bargain buying after finding earlier pressure from an outlook for rainfall in the drought-stricken US Plains hard red winter wheat growing region.
Kansas City Board of Trade (KCBT) hard red winter wheat remained lower on the outlook for better crop seeding and growing weather. At 10:32 am CDT (1532 GMT), KCBT December HRW wheat was down 3-1/4 at $7.00-3/4 and Minneapolis Grain Exchange (MGEX) December spring wheat was down 10 cents at $8.82-1/4.
Dee said by the end of the week the US Plains hard red winter wheat region should see some beneficial rainfall of form 0.30 inch to 0.80 inch (0.8-2.0 cm) with up to 1.00 inch in some areas. "It won't be a drought-ending rain but some of the driest areas where it's most needed in the west will get some rain," he said.