Corn ends below $6 bushel

US grain and soyabean futures sank on Monday, with corn approaching a seven-week low below $6 a bushel as increasing concerns about the eurozone debt crisis encouraged traders to reduce risk. The potential failure of a US debt reduction plan added to concerns about the economy, clouding the outlook for a rebound in commodity demand.
The US congressional "super committee" was expected to formally announce its three-month attempt to forge a $1.2 trillion deficit reduction plan had failed. "The problems in Europe combined with the inability of the super committee to come to any agreement have brought selling into nearly every market," said Tomm Pfitzenmaier, analyst for Summit Commodity Brokerage in Iowa.
Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT) corn for December delivery fell for the fourth straight session, losing 2 percent, or 12 1/2 cents, to settle at $5.97-3/4 per bushel. December wheat tumbled 1.1 percent, or 6-3/4 cents, to a nearly five-month low of $5.91-1/2 per bushel after falling 3.3 percent last week because of euro zone concerns and abundant global supplies.
Most-active January soyabeans lost 1.7 percent, or 20 1/4 cents, to settle at a 13-month low of $11.48 per bushel. Prices fell as fears about Italy and other debt-strapped euro zone countries persisted, with Moody's warning about France's rating outlook and Spanish yields rising a day after the country voted in a new government. Traders worry a global economic slowdown will dent demand for commodities, including farm products. "The constant drumbeat of bad news out of Europe makes it hard for anyone to get overly optimistic about any of the markets," Pfitzenmaier said.
US grains felt additional pressure from export demand that's been hurt by increased competition from Black Sea countries offering less-expensive grain. Over the weekend, Egypt, the world's top wheat buyer, said it bought 240,000 tonnes of Russian, Ukrainian or Kazakh wheat and none from the United States.
Weekly grain export inspections also fell short of expectations. The US Department of Agriculture said 11.597 million bushels of wheat were inspected, below estimates for 12 million to 16 million, and 40.762 million bushels of soyabeans were inspected, below estimates for 45 million to 50 million. Corn was a bright spot, with inspections of 37.567 million bushels, which topped estimates of 25 million to 30 million.