Spot basis bids for corn and soyabeans were mostly steady to weak around the interior US Midwest on Monday, but bids were firmer along Midwest rivers amid easing barge freight rates, grain merchants said.
Corn and soyabean bids were off slightly at one Iowa location due to a pickup in farmer selling of old-crop grain as farmers finished cleaning out grain storage bins ahead of the new-crop harvest, they said. Soft red winter wheat basis bids were unchanged amid higher futures prices and a lack of farmer selling, they said.
Farmer selling of corn and soyabeans was slow early on Monday as most farmers appeared to be focused on preparing for the harvest instead of on marketing grain, dealers said.
A few farmers in the southern stretches of the Midwest have started harvesting some crops, especially from fields damaged by drought in parts of Ohio and eastern Indiana, but the vast majority of crops remain unharvested, they said. Higher futures prices in overnight trading also left many farmers disinterested in selling corn or soyabeans as they hoped for even higher prices, they said.
Sinking barge freight left river dealers with more money to offer farmers which allowed them to increase their basis bids for both corn and soyabeans. River bids for corn were up as much as 7 cents a bushel and soyabean bids rose by as much as 6-1/2 cents a bushel.
In overnight electronic trading, the e-cbot trend for corn was down 1/4 cent to up 2-1/4 cents per bushel while soyabeans were up 1-3/4 to 8-1/4 cents. Wheat was up 2 to 23-3/4 cents per bushel in overnight electronic trade.
Wheat futures were expected to open 20 to 25 cents per bushel higher on Monday following sharply higher overnight trading. Robust export demand amid tightening world supplies remained supportive factors.
CBOT soyabean futures were called to open 5 to 7 cents per bushel higher following firmer overnight trade and on expectations for a sharply higher start in the wheat pit. CBOT corn was seen 1 to 2 cents higher, helped by sharply higher wheat calls but likely capped by seasonal harvest pressure.