Spot basis bids for corn were steady to firm around the US Midwest on Monday while soyabean bids were mostly unchanged, grain dealers said. Country movement was expected to be mostly slow around the region, with the futures market expected to open lower and cut into cash prices.
Most dealers said phone lines were quiet and that farmers were not even telling them the target prices at which they would sell corn and soyabeans. "Nobody is even calling to tell us that right now," an Indiana dealer said.
But one dealer in Illinois said some farmers were calling in to check on the price of corn and booking some light sales ahead of the Chicago Board of Trade open. "We've had a couple of guys calling," the Illinois dealer said. "They are afraid this might be on its way down."
Rainy weather around the Midwest bolstered prospects for this year's recently planted crop but tempered farmers' expectations about how much money they could get for what was left of last year's corn and soyabeans.
But many farmers were still holding out for higher prices for corn and soyabeans before committing to new sales, hoping that mutual-fund buying in the futures market could push prices higher before they have to sell.
Dealers have been unwilling to make aggressive moves to buy grain because they expect farmers will have to sell what remains of last year's crop in the next few months to make room in their storage bins for this year's harvest.
At the Chicago Board of Trade, soyabean futures were called 4 to 6 cents per bushel lower due to the wet weather over the weekend and forecasts for more rain. CBOT corn futures were expected to open 3 to 4 cents per bushel lower, also because of good growing weather. Wheat futures were seen 1 cent to 2 cents per bushel lower on spillover weakness from corn and soya.