Soybeans falls for 4th session on US planting prospects, corn flat

PARIS: Chicago soybean futures slid for a fourth consecutive session, while corn stabilised after falling 1% the previous day as expectations of higher US plantings this year weighed on the market.

Wheat fell after closing higher for the last two sessions.

"We are expecting a big planted area for corn and beans," Ole Houe, director of advisory services at brokerage IKON Commodities in Sydney, said.

"But we think that there could be a few supportive surprises in the report, not so much on the planted area but more around stocks."

The US Department of Agriculture is scheduled to release its annual US planting intentions and quarterly grain stocks reports on March 31.

Analysts expect US growers to increase their seedings of corn and soybeans this spring compared with last year, in response to strong export and domestic demand that lifted prices to multi-year highs in recent months.

The most-active soybeans contract on the Chicago Board Of Trade (CBOT) lost 0.1% to $13.91-1/2 a bushel by 1100 GMT, having closed 1% lower in the previous session.

Corn was virtually unchanged at $5.47 a bushel and wheat gave up 0.6% to $6.13 a bushel.

Concerns that a resurgence in African swine fever outbreaks in China's huge hog herd will hit demand for soymeal, used in animal feed, in the coming months also pressured prices.

Late March rains in Argentina have prepared the ground for smooth wheat and barley sowing, but the storms arrived too late to help corn and soy yields in areas suffering from months of dry weather, farmers and crop analysts said on Monday.

The sowing of Brazil's second corn crop reached 98% of the estimated area for the Center-South of the country through last Thursday, a report by AgRural found.

Despite a delay in plantings that caused many farmers to sow the cereal outside the ideal climate window, Brazil's second corn crop is developing well across the region, the consultancy said.