(Reuters) – Soybeans ticked up on Wednesday, rising for a fourth session out of five as strong demand underpinned prices, but expectations of a record U.S. crop capped gains.
Corn firmed with support from a slow U.S. harvest, while wheat was little changed after closing lower on Tuesday.
The Chicago Board Of Trade most-active soybean contract added 0.2 percent to $9.74-1/2 a bushel by 0335 GMT, having closed down 0.6 percent on Tuesday.
Corn rose 0.1 percent to $3.54-1/4 a bushel and wheat was unchanged at $4.20 a bushel.
“Soybeans continue to be encouraged by strong demand but the market is in a range for quite some time, $9.40-$9.90 range,” said Luke Mathews, senior risk management consultant at FCStone
Australia. “Some of the recent support for soybeans has been taken out because of the very large crop in the United States.”
The U.S. Department of Agriculture on Tuesday confirmed private sales of 706,500 tonnes of U.S. soybeans to China.
A delegation of soybean importers from China, which buys 60 percent of soybeans traded worldwide, has signed agreements to buy 5.1 million tonnes of U.S. soybeans valued at $2.1 billion at a ceremony in Des Moines, Iowa, on Friday.
A larger-than-expected U.S. monthly soy crush figure released Monday by the National Oilseed Processors Association also fuelled early gains, said Mike Zuzolo of Global Commodity Analytics.
The USDA said the U.S. corn harvest was 46 percent complete by Sunday, behind the five-year average of 49 percent and lagging trade expectations.
Commodity funds were net sellers of CBOT corn, wheat and soybean contracts on Tuesday, traders said.
