Spot basis bids for corn rose at river locations around the US Midwest on Tuesday but held steady around the interior, grain dealers said. The river bids for corn were boosted by solid export demand. Cash bids for soyabeans were steady around the interior and at river terminals, dealers said. Wheat bids were steady to firm around the region.
Farmer selling of both corn and soyabeans were slow as cash prices were well below farmers' expectations, dealers said. Most growers still had high expectations for corn and soyabean prices despite a downturn in the futures market on Tuesday. Some dealers had predicted that farmers would start unloading some soyabeans if the futures market weakened. But farmers felt that any weather problems between now and harvest could send prices even higher.
Many farmers were busy harvesting winter wheat or delivering it to processors and elevators. Some growers were hauling corn or soyabeans they had previously contracted to deliver in early July. Truck lines to unload grain were up to four hours long at a processor in Iowa due to the deliveries.
Most processors and elevators will be closed on Wednesday due to the US Independence Day holiday. At the Chicago Board of Trade, July soyabean futures fell 14-1/2 cents, a 1.7 percent drop, to $8.50-1/2 per bushel and August closed 15-1/4 cents lower at $8.55-3/4 per bushel as traders took profits following strong rallies the past two trading days.
CBoT July corn fell 10-1/2 cents, or 3.1 percent, to $3.20 per bushel and September fell 11-1/4 cents to $3.28-1/2 per bushel. Good crop weather around the region was pressuring corn prices, traders said. CBoT July wheat rose 2 cents to $5.71-1/2 per bushel while September wheat eased 1/4 cent to $5.83 per bushel.