US soyabean futures edged higher on Tuesday on continued strong export demand as overseas buyers waited for the bulk of the expected bumper South America harvest to come online, traders said. "Beans continue to be the darling of the grains thanks to a long seasonal export tail, with the big anticipated shift to Brazil still yet to materialise," Matt Zeller, director of market information at INTL FCStone, said in a note to clients.
Corn futures also firmed, finding technical support after dipping to Monday's low, while wheat was mixed. Chicago Board of Trade soft red winter wheat contracts traded in positive territory on support from short-covering while K.C. hard red winter wheat and MGEX spring wheat were weaker, weighed down by a firm dollar.
Movements were muted, with traders reluctant to make bold bets ahead of the US Agriculture Department's monthly supply and demand report, set for release on Wednesday.
At 10:36 am CST (1636 GMT), CBOT March soyabean futures were up 4-1/4 cents at $10.40-1/4 a bushel.
Active buying by Chinese customers following Lunar New Year celebrations buoyed the soya market. "Chinese soyabean demand seems to be back again after the break," said Ole Houe, analyst with brokerage IKON Commodities in Sydney. Traders watched to see if soyabeans could break through last week's high of $10.44-1/4, a level it challenged on Friday and Monday.
CBOT March soft red winter wheat was up 2-1/2 cents at $4.25 a bushel. MGEX spring wheat for March delivery was down 2-3/4 cents at $5.52-1/2 a bushel while March K.C. hard red winter wheat futures dropped 1-3/4 cents to $4.34 a bushel. Wheat prices remain pressured by ample global supplies.
"On a global level, there has long been no shortage of wheat. In fact, three years of surpluses - or even four if the current season is included - have already driven global reserves to a record level," Commerzbank said. Beset by political worries, the euro was set for its biggest daily fall of 2017 versus a broadly stronger US dollar. A strong dollar chills overseas buying interest for US wheat. CBOT March corn was up 1-1/2 cents at $3.65-1/4 a bushel.