Chicago Board of Trade soyabean futures rebounded from a three-month low on Monday, led by export demand for US soyameal, a key source of protein in animal feed rations, traders said. Wheat and corn closed lower. At the CBOT, March soyabeans settled up 10-3/4 cents at $9.83-1/2 per bushel, rallying after falling to $9.67, the lowest spot price since October 23. March wheat settled down 9-1/2 cents at $5.20-1/2 a bushel and March corn fell 2-3/4 cents at $3.84 a bushel.
Soyameal led the strength in the CBOT soya complex, with the lead March contract rising $7.40, or 2.2 percent, to close at $338.90 per ton. "There is talk about US meal being competitive at least through March, and there is some business being done," said Jim Gerlach, president of A/C Trading in Fowler, Indiana. Prices for soyameal from Argentina, the world's top supplier, have risen as poor crush margins have slowed output. The result is that "the US is pretty much the only game in town right now," Futures International analyst Terry Reilly said.
"We're looking at the fourth year in a row that economic problems are hampering Argentina's soyameal exports. They are not crushing as much as they should be," Reilly said. CBOT front-month wheat hit the lowest spot price since November 11, pressed by strength in the US dollar that makes US grains less attractive to those holding other currencies. K.C. March hard red winter wheat set a life-of-contract low at $5.53-1/2.
"The biggest thing right now is that any time we see any strength in the dollar, wheat does the opposite," Gerlach said. Wheat is more sensitive to currency fluctuations than corn and soya because wheat is grown by more global suppliers. Underscoring poor demand, the US Department of Agriculture reported weekly export inspections of US wheat at 263,035 tonnes, at the low end of a range of trade expectations for 250,000 to 400,000 tonnes. Export inspections for soyabeans and corn topped trade expectations at 1.5 million tonnes and 887,000 tonnes, respectively. Corn fell in lackluster trade, with the spot March contract staying inside of Friday's trading range.
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