The Chicago Board of Trade soyabean market was choppy during a shortened session on Wednesday ahead of the US Thanksgiving Day holiday. The exchange was closing early on Wednesday, at noon CST, ahead of the holiday on Thursday. CBOT markets will also close early on Friday.
By 11 am CST (1700 GMT), January soyabeans were down 1/2 cent at $6.72-1/2 per bushel, after climbing to a high of $6.80-1/2 - surpassing last week's $6.77-3/4 top and nearby resistance at $6.79. The back months were up 3 cents to down 3 cents, after most made contract highs.
Iowa Grain, Man Financial, RJ O'Brien, O'Connor, Tenco each sold 100 to 300 January, traders said. Strong demand for vegetable oils globally remains a supportive feature. The price of oil in China has climbed about 25 percent in the past week on good demand. The crushing pace is off in China amid lacklustre demand for soyameal, analysts said.
CBOT December soyaoil was up 0.04 cent at 28.92 cents per lb., with the back months up 0.03 to down 0.01 cent. Contract highs were made early across the board. Soyameal was the weakest of the complex, with December down 50 cents per ton at $191.50. The deferreds were down 40 cents to up 10 cents.
In exports, the US Agriculture Department early Wednesday confirmed the sale of 122,000 tonnes of US soya to China for 2006-07 delivery. Spot basis bids for soyabeans were steady to firm early Wednesday, underpinned by quiet farmer sales ahead of the holiday. The US harvest was virtually complete, except for some areas of the eastern belt, where soggy fields have stalled farmers. The weather was expected to clear this week, which should help farmers wrap up. Next week should turn wet again, said Meteorlogix weather service.