BEIJING: Chicago soybean and corn futures fell on Monday, pressured by favourable US weather and concerns over export demand as US trade tensions with top buyer China continued to weigh on the market.
The most active soybean contract on the Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT) was down 0.38% at $10.38-4/8 per bushel, as of 0226 GMT.
A week ago, US President Donald Trump urged China to quadruple its soybean purchases, briefly fuelling hopes for stronger demand, but optimism has since faded, with little sign of progress in trade talks on the issue.
US soybean exporters risk missing out on billions of dollars worth of sales to China this year as negotiations drag on, traders said.
Corn slipped 0.8% to $4.02 a bushel, pressured by benign weather and abundant supplies.
The USDA last week forecast a record-large US corn crop in 2025/26, while projecting a much smaller-than-expected soybean harvest.
“US futures markets today are mainly driven by benign US weather and a bit of continued indigestion from last week’s USDA report,” said Ole Houe of IKON Commodities in Sydney.
“Global demand is still slow. China has yet to show up for beans or corn out of the US so the market tends to slide every day there is no new news,” he added.
Traders are also watching the Pro Farmer Midwest crop tour, which will estimate corn yields and gauge soybean production potential across seven US states this week before issuing its crop outlook on Friday.
Wheat dropped 0.43% to $5.24-6/8 a bushel on concerns about big global supplies.