BEIJING/PARIS: Chicago soybean futures rose on Wednesday as crude oil recovered from a day-earlier plunge while investors wrestled with disruption caused by the US-Israeli war with Iran.
Corn and wheat were also higher, steadying after a two-session fall.
The most-active soybean contract on the Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT) was up 1.2percent at USD12.16 a bushel, as of 1154 GMT. Soyoil added 3.2percent to 67.73 cents per pound.
Higher crude prices can support soybeans as soyoil is widely used to produce biodiesel fuel.
“Oilseeds continue to be supported by elevated energy prices,” said Dennis Voznesenski, an analyst at Sydney’s Commonwealth Bank.
“While some are optimistic of a quick end to the conflict and restart of fuel and fertiliser shipments via the Strait of Hormuz, recent Iranian attempts to mine the Strait speak to the opposite.”
Crude tumbled on Tuesday as investors reacted to US President Donald Trump’s prediction the war could end soon. But concerns about significant fallout for energy and shipping remained and helped prices turn higher on Wednesday.
CBOT corn was up 1.2percent at USD4.57-1/2 a bushel, while CBOT wheat rose 1.4percent to USD5.99-1/4 a bushel. Corn like soyoil is heavily used in biofuel. Wheat can also be sensitive to crude fluctuations because of geopolitical risks and commodity investment flows.
“Faced with the military situation in the Middle East, traders remain above all focused on the evolution of oil prices,” Argus Media analysts said.
The upheaval in the Middle East has shifted attention away from ample global supplies of grain, helping lift Chicago prices to multi-year and multi-month highs on Monday. Traders largely brushed off a monthly supply-and-demand report from the US Department of Agriculture on Tuesday.