(Reuters) – U.S. soybean futures climbed to a one-week peak on Monday on strong export demand and drier-than-expected Midwest weather over the weekend, but forecasts for a bumper U.S. harvest this autumn limited gains.
Corn futures weakened on expectations for a record-large U.S. crop this fall. Wheat prices were narrowly mixed.
Some traders were squaring their positions in grain markets ahead of a monthly U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) crop report due on Friday. The government is broadly expected to increase its U.S. corn and soy production forecasts.
“We had some short covering in the overnight session and this morning, but we’ve given a lot of it back,” said Karl Setzer, analyst with MaxYield Cooperative.
“People are squaring positions ahead of the report on Friday. Everybody is expecting higher yields on corn and soybeans, but the question is just how much bigger,” he said.
Robust export demand kept a floor under corn and soybean prices as the USDA on Monday announced large sales of both commodities via its daily reporting system. Monday’s 246,000-tonne soybean sale to China was the ninth daily sales announcement in nine trading days.
Meanwhile, a large export inspections total last week, according to USDA data released early on Monday, underscored continued strong demand for old-crop supplies.
Top global soy buyer China imported 7.76 million tonnes of soybeans in July, up 2.6 percent from 7.56 million tonnes in June, figures from the General Administration of Customs of China showed.
Chicago Board of Trade November soybeans rose 6-1/2 cents, or 0.7 percent, to $9.81 a bushel by 12:47 p.m. CDT (1747 GMT) while CBOT December corn was 1/4 cent lower at $3.34 a bushel.
Mostly favorable crop weather in the U.S. Midwest has kept a lid on prices as corn and soybean crop ratings remained near historic highs.
Analysts, on average, expect the USDA to slightly lower its corn condition rating in a report due later on Monday while keeping its soy crop condition rating unchanged.
CBOT September wheat was 1-3/4 cents higher at $4.17-3/4 a bushel, while deferred contracts eased as commodity index funds rolled short positions forward.
A stronger U.S. dollar hung over the wheat market as it makes shipments from the United States more expensive for those holding other currencies.
