Soyabean export premiums at the US Gulf Coast held steady on Friday in seasonally quiet trade as top soya importer China is booking cheaper beans from South American suppliers, traders said. US Gulf offers for March were not well established due to tight loading capacity and challenges sourcing enough beans quickly enough to load this month. April Gulf prices are about $12 per tonne more expensive on a free-on-board basis than spot shipments from Brazil's Paranagua port, Reuters data showed.
China was a very active buyer of Brazilian and Argentine soyabeans for April through August shipment this week after traders returned from the Lunar New Year holiday. The number of ships waiting to load soyabeans at Brazilian ports jumped 61 percent this week, partly due to loading delays caused by a trucker strike.
China may sell up to 1.5 million tonnes of its state soyabean reserves and refill them with Brazilian soya shipped in August, China's CNGOIC think tank said. The USDA attache for China estimated Beijing's 2015-16 marketing year soyabean imports at a record 77.5 million tonnes and 2014-15 imports at 73 million tonnes, below the USDA's official 74-million-tonne estimate.
FOB corn basis offers were steady to slightly firmer on Friday, with some deferred shipment prices rising in tandem with higher CIF barge bids. US corn prices at the Gulf are above Ukrainian corn prices and costs for some Argentine shipments, which has attracted buying interest from price-sensitive importers such as South Korea. But routine US corn buyers, such as Japan, Mexico and smaller markets in Latin America, are supporting US corn export volumes.
FOB wheat basis offers were unchanged in quiet trading as US wheat struggled to compete in the global marketplace with cheaper grain available from other suppliers, chiefly from Black Sea exporters. The strong dollar further hurt US export prospects as it makes US wheat more expensive for those holding other currencies. The greenback on Friday hit its highest point since 2003 against a basket of currencies.
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