US FOB Gulf corn basis offers rose on Monday amid solid export demand last week and falling futures prices, traders said. Soyabean basis offers held steady in a market seeing little export demand due to cheaper prices in South America. US soyabeans for early July shipment were offered at 14 cents a bushel premium to CBOT July, compared with 27 cents discount in Brazil.
Corn export premiums rose amid sales of US corn last week amid a 50-cent per bushel drop in futures prices, traders said. The Korean Feed Association was expected to tender to buy US corn for October arrival this week if CBOT corn falls further. Prices for the July and September contracts fell 9-3/4 cents on Monday.
Ocean freight rates were rising again, which was keeping the delivered price of grain near record highs. Soft red winter wheat basis offers were steady to higher, supported by Egypt's GASC buying 60,000 tonnes for July shipment and tight world supplies. Egypt also bought another 60,000 tonnes of US SRW wheat delivered in country.
Traders were surprised how cheaply Bunge Ltd offered to sell US soft red winter wheat for July shipment. Bunge offered GASC the wheat at $210.67 per tonne FOB. The next cheapest offer was $218.49 per tonne FOB. "I think they left a lot of money on the table and that GASC got a good deal," said a wheat trader.
Hard red winter wheat export premiums were firm amid concerns about the quality of this year's crop. Initial reports continue of below-average protein levels in the US Plains, ranging mostly from 10.5 to 11.2 percent. Exporters continue to offer to sell 12 percent protein wheat but are not guaranteeing that protein level. Instead the offers include discounts for various protein levels down to 11 percent.