SINGAPORE: Chicago soybeans fell on Tuesday, shedding some of previous session’s gains and easing from their highest levels since early December, although concerns over adverse weather conditions in top exporter Brazil limited losses.
Corn and wheat prices inched higher.
“Brazilian weather is a key factor in the soybean market, prices have been supported by dry weather,” said one Singapore-based trader. “Prospects of lower supplies from Brazil is driving demand for US beans.”
The most-active soybean contract on the Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT) was down 0.2% at $13.34 a bushel, as of 0421 GMT.
The contract rose to the highest since Dec. 1 at $13.42 a bushel earlier in the session.
Corn gained 0.2% at $4.82-1/2 a bushel and wheat added 0.1% to $6.10-1/4 a bushel.
Weather forecasts show northern half of Brazil may still not be getting enough rain to offset drought conditions, which have delayed planting and threatened crops.
Brazil’s 2023/24 soybean planting had reached 91% of the expected area, as of Thursday, agribusiness consultancy AgRural said on Monday, up 6 percentage points from the previous week.
Chicago soybean futures rise on China demand
Sowing continues to lag behind last year’s levels, when 95% of the areas had been planted at the same time, AgRural said in a statement.
Soybeans were also supported by the US Department of Agriculture confirming private sales of 132,000 metric tons of US soybeans for delivery to unknown destinations in the 2023/24 marketing year that began Sept. 1.
In the wheat market, export prices for Russian cargoes rose further last week as the situation with shipments from ports remained difficult due to adverse weather conditions, analysts say.
The price of 12.5% protein Russian wheat scheduled for free-on-board (FOB) delivery in January was $241 per metric ton, up $5 from the previous week, the IKAR agriculture consultancy reported.
China produced a record corn crop this year, up 4% from a year earlier, the National Bureau of Statistics said on Monday, with an increase in area under cultivation more than compensating for damage caused by summer typhoons.
Commodity funds were net buyers of CBOT soybeans, soymeal and soyoil futures contracts on Monday, traders said. Funds were net sellers of corn and wheat futures, they said.
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