(Reuters) – U.S. corn futures fell more than 1 percent on Monday to extend losses over the last two sessions to 2 percent, while soybeans fell to an 11-day low as a slump in oil prices weighed on oilseeds and biofuel markets.
Wheat fell after surging nearly 3 percent on Friday, though losses were capped by concerns over potential supply disruptions from Russia.
Chicago Board of Trade March corn futures, the most actively traded contract, fell 1.22 percent to $3.84 a bushel, having closed down 0.7 percent on Friday. January soybean futures dropped 0.5 percent to $10.10-3/4 a bushel. They earlier touched their lowest since Nov. 20 at $10.06-1/2 a bushel. Soybeans closed down 3 percent in the previous session.
“The sell-off in oil is huge and is having a massive impact as it flows through to other commodities,” said Phin Ziebell agribusiness economist, National Australia Bank. U.S. crude fell more than $2 to a five-year low in Asian trade on Monday. Brent futures also touched a nearly five-year low, extending a steep sell-off after OPEC decided not to cut output last week, keeping markets well supplied.
Traders said soybeans were under additional pressure amid concerns over global demand, with fresh economic data indicating a cooling Chinese economy. China’s official Purchasing Managers’ Index for November came in lower than expected on Monday, underlining challenges facing the manufacturing sector from rising costs and softening demand.
March wheat futures fell 0.8 percent to $5.74 a bushel, having closed up 2.8 percent on Friday. Analysts said wheat losses were being capped by plans for tighter export rules out of Russia that could lead to a big drop in grain shipments.
