(BusinessWeek) – Soybeans dropped, paring the first quarterly advance in a year, on concern that a possible U.S. government shutdown may disrupt crop inspections, while favorable weather boosted harvest prospects. Corn and wheat fell.
Soybeans for delivery in November declined as much as 0.8 percent to $13.09 a bushel on the Chicago Board of Trade and traded at $13.1075 at 11:29 a.m. in Singapore. Prices advanced 4.7 percent since the end of June.
The U.S. government faces a risk of the first shutdown in 17 years from tomorrow because of a budget impasse, and unless differences are resolved as many as 800,000 federal employees will be on furlough. Light to moderate rain was seen in the western Midwest through the southeastern Plains on Sept. 28, with a drier trend elsewhere, DTN said in a Sept. 27 forecast.
“Traders may be cautious about trading right now because there is no certainty whether grains inspection will continue at the same rate,” said Joyce Liu, an analyst at Phillip Futures Pte in Singapore, referring to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. The favorable weather in the U.S. will help with rapid harvesting, she said.
Corn for delivery in December dropped 0.2 percent to $4.53 a bushel in Chicago. Prices lost 11 percent since the end of June, heading for a fourth straight quarterly retreat that would be the longest slump since 2009.
Wheat for delivery in December fell 0.3 percent to $6.8125 a bushel in Chicago. Prices gained 3.6 percent since the end of June, poised to snap three straight quarterly losses.
