US MIDDAY: soya drops on profit-taking setback

Soyabean futures at the Chicago Board of Trade turned lower early on Tuesday on a profit-taking setback from a late rally on Monday, traders said. Weaker CIF cash soya values early Tuesday also weighed on prices, trade sources said. At 10:14 am CST (1614 GMT), soya was 1-1/2 to 6 cents per bushel lower, with January down 2 at $5.58 per bushel. March was down 2-3/4 at $5.45-3/4.
Refco Inc. sold 300 March, R.J. O'Brien sold 200 March and Citigroup bought 400 March.
Position-squaring was noted ahead of the release early Wednesday of the US Department of Agriculture's January crop production reports.
An average of analysts' estimates pegged 2004 US soya production at a record 3.150 billion bushels. That's above the previous record of 2.89 billion produced in 2001.
Export activity overnight included South Korea's purchase of 52,500 tonnes of US soya.
There were no deliveries on the January contract Tuesday and registrations with the CBOT were unchanged at two lots. The cash soya basis late Monday in the Midwest was steady to firm amid scattered farmer selling. Technical support in the March contract was at $5.37-1/2 per bushel and resistance was at $5.50.
Soyameal was 60 cents per ton lower to $1 higher, with nearby months pressured by a setback from strong fund-related gains on Monday.
At 10:22 am CST (1622 GMT), January soyameal was 20 cents lower at $166.70 per ton. March was down 30 at $166.20.
Soyaoil was down 0.27 cent per lb. to up 0.05 cent, with most contracts down on a setback from recent gains and by spillover pressure from a downturn in soya.
Commercial deliveries on the January contract also weighed on prices and Malaysian palm oil futures closed lower overnight. Early Tuesday there was news that Iran was tendering to buy 15,000 tonnes of Malaysian palm olein.
Deliveries on the January contract Tuesday totalled 194 lots. The Bunge house account delivered all of the soyameal. The key stopper was a Tenco customer taking 108 lots. Registrations with the CBOT increased to 2,295 lots from the previous 2,101.