(Bloomberg) – Soybeans gained on speculation deliveries from Brazil, poised to be the world’s largest shipper this year, may be disrupted as port workers plan a strike. Wheat declined and corn was little changed.
The oilseed for delivery in July advanced as much as 0.6 percent to $14.2275 a bushel on the Chicago Board of Trade, after losing 0.3 percent yesterday. It last traded at $14.1750 at 10:15 a.m. in Singapore on volume that was 45 percent less than the 100-day average for that time of day.
Workers in Brazil’s ports of Santos, Parangua and Rio de Janeiro plan a stoppage, Forca Sindical, an umbrella group for Brazilian trade unions, said by e-mail yesterday. Workers are protesting a government proposal to change port regulations to lure investments, Sindical said. Brazil is expected to ship a record 7.6 million tons of the oilseed in May after permitting ports to operate 24 hours a day, from a previous 8-hour limit, Oil World said yesterday.
“It’s possible that soybean prices are rising because dock workers are planning another strike, delaying shipments from Brazil,” Joyce Liu, an analyst at Phillip Futures Pte., said by phone from Singapore. “Just like in the past, they may call off the strike and say they will talk to the government instead. If that happens, we may see more volatility.”
Corn for July delivery lost as much as 0.2 percent to $6.51 a bushel in Chicago, before trading little changed at $6.52. Wheat declined 0.2 percent to $7.0925 a bushel.
