(Bloomberg) – Soybean futures fell to an 18-month low on speculation that wet, cool weather will boost crops in the U.S., the world’s biggest grower. Corn dropped, while wheat gained.
Cool temperatures are expected in the northern Great Plains and Midwest, and rain will fall from Missouri to Tennessee, DTN said. About 64 percent of the soybean crop was in good or excellent condition as of Aug. 4, up from 63 percent a week earlier, U.S. Department of Agriculture data showed yesterday.
“We’re getting some rain throughout the Midwest this morning, and the forecast is for above-normal precipitation, so there’s room for prices to go lower,” Brian Hoops, the president of Midwest Market Solutions in Springfield, Missouri, said in a telephone interview.
Soybean futures for November delivery fell 1.4 percent to settle at $11.6725 a bushel at 1:15 p.m. on the Chicago Board of Trade. Earlier, the price touched $11.6525, the lowest for a most-active contract since Jan. 17, 2012. The oilseed has dropped 17 percent this year on speculation that the U.S. crop will climb to a record in 2013.
Corn futures for December delivery fell 0.3 percent to $4.5925 a bushel. Earlier, the price touched $4.55, the lowest since Oct. 4, 2010. In July, the grain dropped 6.3 percent, the sixth straight decline and the longest slump since 1996.
Wheat futures for September delivery rose 0.8 percent to $6.505 a bushel.
Corn is the biggest U.S. crop, followed by soybeans, hay and wheat, USDA data show.
