CHICAGO: Chicago Board of Trade soyabean futures rose on Wednesday, recouping some of their heavy losses from a day earlier, as a lower-than-expected US crop rating tempered hopes that forecast rain will improve field conditions.
Corn futures extended a decline after tumbling by their daily limit on Tuesday, when the outlook for US rain and moderate temperatures during the upcoming pollination period sparked selling.
There is also uncertainty over corn demand, brokers said, as Chinese farmers have sharply increased corn planting this year in a trend that is likely to cool the country’s recent rampant appetite for imports.
In the United States, traders were studying crop conditions as cooler, wetter weather is expected to bring some relief to crops that suffered from hot, dry weather in parts of the upper Midwest.
The US Department of Agriculture, in a report released after Tuesday’s market close, rated 64% of the US corn crop in good-to-excellent condition, unchanged from the previous week and in line with analyst expectations. Soyabeans were rated 59% good to excellent, down from 60% a week earlier.
“The trade was actually caught a bit off guard by the 1% drop in the condition rating and that is supporting prices,” said Tomm Pfitzenmaier, analyst for Summit Commodity Brokerage in Iowa.
Most-active soyabean futures were up 19-1/2 cents at $13.24-1/2 a bushel by 10:55 a.m. CDT (1555 GMT).
Strength in crude oil futures helped support soyabeans, a broker said.
Corn futures were down 11-1/4 cents at $5.28-1/2 a bushel, having closed down by the 40-cent limit in the previous session. CBOT wheat slipped 1/2-cent to $6.25-1/2 a bushel, stabilizing after Tuesday’s sell-off.
At MGEX, September spring wheat futures jumped 14-1/2 cents to $8.07-3/4. The USDA rated 16% of the drought-hit US spring wheat crop as good to excellent, down from 20% a week ago.
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