Export premiums for corn shipped from the US Gulf Coast firmed on Monday for near term shipments as slowed barge movement due to Midwest river flooding lifted CIF basis values, raising grain acquisition costs for exporters, traders said. FOB soyabean basis offers were mostly steady for old-crop shipments, underpinned by flood-related shipping delays but capped by seasonally slow export demand. New-crop offers were steady to firm on good demand.
Wheat export premiums were unchanged in quiet trade as US supplies struggled to compete with lower-cost rivals in the world market. Flooding on the Illinois and Mississippi rivers prevented many elevators from loading barges while strong currents discouraged some shippers from navigating the river.
The Mississippi River at St. Louis is crested at nearly 37 feet on Sunday and was forecast to drop over the next week, according to the National Weather Service. Traders said river levels above 35 feet forced numerous elevators there to halt barge loading. A rise above 38 feet would trigger a formal closure of the Port of St. Louis, they said.
CIF basis bids for corn barges loaded in June rose to 69 cents a bushel over Chicago Board of Trade July futures, up 4 cents on the day, due to river shipping woes. corn basis offers for July gained 5 cents to 76 cents over CBOT July futures. New-crop soyabean CIF barges actively traded on Monday as at least one large exporter sought supplies to fill recent export sales, a trader said.
FOB soyabean basis offers for July were offered at 105 cents over Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT) July soyabean futures. Port workers at Argentina's Rosario grains hub called off a strike that was planned for Tuesday after agreeing with export companies to a wage increase.
Comments
Comments are closed.