US soybean futures clawed back lost ground on Friday, after plunging nearly 3 percent the previous day as drier weather allowed harvesting of corn and soybean crops in the US Midwest to pick up speed. Corn and wheat futures continued to fall, due to the harvest boosting supplies of corn and the planting window for US winter wheat crops improving.
Drier weather is forecast for the US Midwest for the next two weeks, which will provide a chance for farmers to finish corn and soybean crops harvests and winter wheat plantings. US soybean export sales last week were within expectations at 525,000 tonnes. Still, this was 25 percent less than the week prior and exports sales in the past 4 weeks were 31 percent less than the pace of 2008.
Abundant rains in Brazil have boosted the estimate of Brazil's soybean production to a fresh record of 62.5-63.6 million tonnes, up from a previous estimate of 62.3-63.3 million tonnes. Soybean planting in Argentina is running at only 12 percent complete versus the normal pace of 30 percent. The forecast area to be planted is unchanged from past week at a record 19 million hectares according to the Buenos Aires Grains Exchange.
* US corn export sales in the last week came in above expectations at 571,000, up 55 percent from the week before and nearly 30 percent from the previous four week average. US stocks jumped on Thursday, pushing the S&P 500 up for a fourth day, as economic data boosted confidence in the recovery and strong results from Cisco Systems suggested a rebound in technology spending.
The Dow Jones industrial average jumped 203.82 points, or 2.08 percent, to end at 10,005.96. The dollar edged up against major currencies on Thursday, recovering some recent losses, as investors booked profits before a US employment report expected to shed more light on the health of the economy. Oil remained below $80 per barrel on Friday trading around $79.25 after tumbling nearly 1 percent on Thursday as doubts about a recovery in oil demand outweighed positive economic signals.
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