US Midwest corn and soyabean mostly steady

Spot basis bids for corn and soyabeans were steady at most locations around the US Midwest on Thursday but fell slightly at some locations in Ohio due to light farmer selling, grain dealers said.
Bids were up slightly in areas such as Nebraska where crops have been hard hit by hot and dry weather this month. Sales in those areas were slow. Most farmers were waiting for the release of the US Agriculture Department's crop production report, which is scheduled for Friday, before committing to any new sales.
Farmers wanted to see if cash prices would rise should the report show production was lagging expectations this year. "They are hoping that the report gives them some bullish news to pop the market up," an Indiana dealer.
But some farmers east of the Mississippi River, where growing conditions have been the best this summer, already have begun to sell small amounts of grain to hedge their bets should prices fall even further.
"We are kind of getting to that point where they are going to have to give up the ghost," a dealer in southern Ohio said. Most farmers were facing loan payments and would have to sell some old crop corn or soyabeans to generate cash in the next few weeks. Farmers also were expected to sell before the upcoming harvest to clear out space in their storage bins.
In export news, USDA said export sales of corn were 1.72 million tonnes (old crop and new crop combined), beating analysts' expectations of 900,000 tonnes to 1.2 million tonnes.
Soyabean export sales were 541,100 tonnes (old crop and new crop combined), above expectations of 200,000 tonnes to 400,000 tonnes. Export sales of wheat were 395,600 tonnes (old crop only), in line with market forecasts for 350,000 tonnes to 550,000 tonnes.
At the Chicago Board of Trade, soyabean futures were called 1 cent to 2 cents per bushel lower. Traders said a setback was likely following Wednesday's mutual fund-led short covering rally. CBOT corn futures were expected to open steady to 1/2 cent per bushel lower, with good growing weather weighing on prices. CBOT wheat was called 1/2 cent to 1 cent per bushel lower.