Soybeans ease after rally; Chinese demand hopes limit losses

SINGAPORE/PARIS: Chicago soybean futures eased on Monday as the market took a breather after the previous session's climb to the highest since early April on expectations of strong Chinese demand.

Wheat lost more ground on the progress of the US winter crop harvest while corn slid after three sessions of gains.

"US spot soybeans are at a deeper discount to Brazil soybeans," said Tobin Gorey, director of agricultural strategy at Commonwealth Bank of Australia. "That discount is one important tick in the box for China's importers to keep buying US beans."

The most active soybean contract on the Chicago Board of Trade fell 0.2% to $8.74-3/4 a bushel by 1100 GMT. It rose 0.4% on Friday, with prices touching an April 1 high of $8.80-1/2 a bushel.

Talks last week between US and Chinese officials encouraged hopes that Beijing would continue to buy American farm goods, as called for under a trade agreement.

Wheat was down 0.6% at $4.82-1/4 a bushel, having hit a September 2019 low of $4.76 a bushel on Friday, and corn fell 0.5% to $3.30-3/4 a bushel.

IKAR, one of the leading agriculture consultancies in Moscow, on Monday raised its estimate for Russia's 2020/21 wheat crop to 79.5 million tonnes from the previously expected 78 million tonnes.

In France, the condition of French soft wheat was stable for a third week in a row last week, data from farm office FranceAgriMer showed on Friday, suggesting showers and moderate temperatures have brought some relief to crops after a very dry spring.