Soyabean futures at the Chicago Board of Trade ended higher on Thursday, led by gains in soyaoil amid talk of fresh Chinese interest in South American oil, traders said.
The CBOT soyabean market ended 3-1/2 to 6 cents per bushel higher after spending most of the session in a mixed, choppy range.
The back three months posted contract highs. The January contract gained the most, up 6 cents at $7.93-1/2, as traders exited their positions before the last trading day on January 14.
January deliveries were modest on Thursday at 89 contracts, with signs of strong stopping as a prudential customer took 61.
March soyabeans closed 3-3/4 cents higher at $7.97-1/2, with commercials featured buyers.
ADM Investor Services, Cargill Inc, Produce Grain and Term Commodities all bought March. The late rally in soyabeans was tied to floor talk that China was interested in South American soyaoil, traders said.
Term Commodities, the marketing arm of exporter Louis Dreyfus, was a late buyer of October and December soyaoil.
Commodity funds were also noted buyers of soyaoil, ending the day about 1,500 net long soyaoil futures.
CBOT soyaoil closed 0.40 cent to 0.61 cent per lb higher, with January up 0.61 cent at 28.67 cents and March up 0.54 at 28.43 cents.
The soya market opened lower after the US Department of Agriculture released bearish export data. USDA said last week's soya export sales totalled 218,500 tonnes, below trade estimates for 250,000 to 400,000 tonnes.
Sales of 162,100 tonnes for the 2003/04-crop years were a marketing-year low. But top buyer China booked 64,400 tonnes.
Overnight export news provided another bearish nod.
South Korea asked for offers to buy 105,000 tonnes of Brazilian soya in a tender set to close on Friday, traders in Seoul said.
Traders were also evening positions before on Monday's USDA annual crop and monthly supply-and-demand data.
The market continues to eye a tight 2003/04 US ending stocks picture.
An average of analysts expected USDA to drop its ending stocks estimate to 111 million bushels from its December forecast of 125 million, a 27-year low.
CBOT soyameal futures got a late lift from soyaoil and soyabeans, ending 10 cents lower to up $1.90 per ton following weak trade most of Thursday.
March closed steady at $241.30. Disappointing weekly US export soyameal sales at a negative 30,000 tonnes sparked active commercial spreading, traders said.
The negative sales were a result of 121,200 tonnes cancelled.
January meal was the only month to close lower, down 10 cents at $239.80, despite the absence of futures deliveries.
US soyaoil export sales were viewed neutral too bearish at 3,300 tonnes, at the low end of estimates for 2,000 to 7,000 tonnes.
Deliveries on the January soyaoil contract on Thursday totalled 291 lots, with a prudential customer posting 290.
A Prudential customer stopped 123 lots and a customer of R.J. O'Brien took 138 lots.