PARIS/SINGAPORE: Chicago soybean futures fell for a third straight session on Tuesday to a two-week low as the arrival of rain in some parched South American growing belts eased harvest concerns.
Corn also lost ground on the rain relief in Argentina and southern Brazil.
Wheat rose following a three-day slide, tracking a rebound in European futures on Monday when U.S. markets were closed for a holiday.
The most-active soybean contract on the Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT) was down 1.1% at $13.54-1/2 a bushel by 1253 GMT, near an earlier two-week low of $13.52. “In Argentina, the long-awaited rains arrived this weekend and should last for the next few days,” consultancy Agritel said. “For the earliest crops, the harvest potential will nevertheless have already been affected.”
Heavy weekend showers broke weeks of dry weather that led crop observers to cut forecasts for Argentina’s soybean and corn production. Some rain is also expected in drought-affected southern Brazil, although showers may also hamper soybean harvesting further north.
Harvesting of Brazil’s soybean crop reached 1.7% of the estimated area amid delays in the centre and north of the country caused by heavy rainfall, agribusiness consultancy Patria Agronegocios said on Monday. Corn and soy markets are also monitoring Chinese imports after signs of slower demand due to low margins in the country’s pig sector.
CBOT corn fell 0.8% to $5.91-1/4 a bushel.
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