CANBERRA/PARIS: Chicago soybean futures edged lower on Wednesday as cheap South American supply made US beans less competitive in export markets and speculators bet on further price declines.
Corn futures also fell as plentiful supply held prices near lows hit last week, while wheat was pressured by bumper Russian production looming over the market.
The most active soybean contract on the Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT) was down 0.3% at $11.37-1/2 a bushel at 1150 GMT, after touching $11.34 on Monday, its lowest level since November 2020.
Beans are pouring into the market as the harvest progresses in top producer and exporter Brazil, whose crop has not been as badly hit by adverse weather as many analysts feared a few months ago.
“The trend for soybeans is down and it will keep going down,” said Rabobank analyst Vitor Pistoia, adding that his bank forecast prices falling to $11 by the end of the year.
Prices in Brazil are so low that the United States is importing Brazilian soybeans.
The market largely shrugged off confirmation by the US Department of Agriculture on Tuesday that US exporters sold 123,000 metric tons of soybeans to unknown destinations.
CBOT corn was down 0.2% at $4.22-1/2 a bushel, having slid to $4.04 last week. Wheat dipped 1% to $5.78-1/2 a bushel.
Speculative investors have amassed large net short positions in all three crops, pushing prices lower but leaving them vulnerable to bouts of short-covering.
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