Soybeans hit 8-day low, South American supply concerns cap losses

CANBERRA: US soybean futures edged lower on Thursday to hit a more than one-week low, though concerns about global supplies provided a floor to losses.

FUNDAMENTALS

• The most active soybean futures on the Chicago Board Of Trade were down 0.3% to $14.05-3/4 a bushel by 0208 GMT, near the session low of $14.02-1/4 a bushel - the weakest since March 3. Soybeans closed down 2.1% on Wednesday.

  • The most active corn futures were down 0.3% to $5.32-1/4 a bushel, having closed down 2.1% in the previous session.

  • The most active wheat futures were little changed at $6.52-3/4 a bushel, having closed down 0.6% on Wednesday.

• Argentina's Rosario Grains Exchange on Wednesday cut its estimate of the country's 2020/21 soybean harvest to 45 million tonnes from 49 million tonnes previously, citing dry weather.

  • The US Department of Agriculture (USDA) on Tuesday trimmed its Argentine soy crop estimate to 47.5 million tonnes from 48 million tonnes last month, but it raised its estimate of Brazil's soy harvest to 134 million tonnes from 133 million tonnes.

  • The USDA also raised its forecast of global ending stocks of both corn and soybeans, bucking trade expectations for a reduction.

MARKET NEWS

• The dollar nursed losses against most currencies on Thursday after benign data on US consumer price data and a decline in Treasury yields led some investors to trim bets on a rapid acceleration in inflation.

• Crude oil prices rose as vaccine rollouts bolstered the economic outlook and US fuel stocks fell sharply, although gains were capped by a surge in crude oil inventories after last month's Texas storm.

• Asian stocks were set to open slightly higher, following Wall Street's momentum, after a report on US consumer prices calmed concerns about inflation, helping steer the Dow Jones Industrial Average to a record close.