Soya lower

US soyabean futures turned lower on Tuesday on active harvesting of the US soyabean crop and persistent reports of better-than-expected yields. Corn also eased on seasonal harvest pressure and big yields, while wheat turned up on bargain buying and a partial reversal of the technical downturn that occurred during Monday's trading session.
A lower US dollar index and strong gains in gold limited the slide of corn and soya and helped boost wheat futures. A weak dollar makes US commodities a more profitable purchase for overseas buyers using currencies such as the yen or euro. Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT) November soyabeans closed down 1 cent per bushel at $13.02-1/4 per bushel, December corn was down 5-3/4 at $4.38-1/4, and December wheat was up 1 cent at $7.00-3/4.
Trading was very quiet and the volume was light with commodity funds selling an estimated net 5,000 CBOT corn contracts or 25 million bushels. The funds sold and estimated 1,000 soyabean contracts or 5 million bushels and bought 1,000 wheat contracts or 5 million bushels. Traders and analysts said the soya and corn markets were garnering significant attention due to reports of big yields in the US autumn harvest.
"The surprise is not that we are down but that we didn't see a more significant sell-off," said Arlan Suderman, senior market analyst for Water Street Advisory. Suderman said the US Department of Agriculture's (USDA) weekly crop progress report, released late on Monday, confirmed that US soyabean and corn yields were above expectations.
USDA data showed the condition of the US soyabean crop as of Sunday at 57 percent good-to-excellent, up from 53 percent at the end of September. Corn conditions were at 60 percent good-to-excellent versus 55 percent at the end of September. The USDA did not issue crop progress reports during the roughly three weeks the federal government was shut down.
"It's not unusual for crop ratings to turn higher as harvest progresses, but the increase from September 30 was bigger than most, suggesting nearly a 4-bushel increase in the corn yield and nearly 3/4 bushel increase in soyabeans," Suderman said. A Reuters poll of 16 analysts late last week showed, on average US corn yield per acre at 157.175 bushels per acre, above USDA's current forecast for 155.3, and soya yields at 41.931 bushels per acre, up from USDA's outlook for 41.2. "Harvest progress was good and I think there is profit-taking and technical selling around the $13 level in beans," said Mike Zuzolo, analyst for Global Commodity Analytics.