PARIS/SINGAPORE: Chicago corn, wheat and soybean futures turned lower on Wednesday in step with crude oil as investors saw rising chances for an end to the month-old US-Israeli war with Iran.
Comments by US President Donald Trump, who said on Tuesday that the US could end its military attacks on Iran in two to three weeks, bolstered market hopes of de-escalation in the conflict. Grain and oilseed prices have broadly tracked fluctuations in crude oil during the war, reflecting the use of corn and soyoil in biofuels and knock-on effects on crop production from rising energy and fertiliser prices.
Countries including top palm oil producer Indonesia have announced plans to expand biofuel blending in response to soaring oil prices.
“The main factor is the pullback in crude oil after the latest comments on the Iran war,” a European broker said.
The most-active corn contract on the Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT) was down 1.1percent at USD4.52-3/4 a bushel, as of 1059 GMT, while CBOT soybeans eased 0.5percent to USD11.65-1/2 a bushel.
CBOT wheat fell 2.3percent to USD6.02-1/4 a bushel, interrupting a six-session rise that took the benchmark to a three-week high on Tuesday.
The weakness in crude oil countered support from US planting data and worsening crop conditions in US wheat belts. US farmers plan to plant less corn and more soybeans in 2026 than last year, the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) said on Tuesday.
Analysts expect the impact of the Iran war on fertilizer and fuel prices to lead farmers to shift more acreage from corn to soybeans than projected by the USDA.
The agency also estimated that the all-wheat acreage this year will be the smallest in records going back to 1919. Reduced planting could further curb US wheat harvest prospects as dryness stresses some crops.
“A big chunk of Hard Red Winter wheat crop in the US is facing drought,” said Tobin Gorey, founder of commodities consultancy Cornucopia in Australia.
Rain is set to return to the US Plains this week, though forecasts suggest it may miss some southwestern areas.
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