Soyabean futures at the Chicago Board of Trade were called to open 10 to 12 cents per bushel higher on Tuesday on technical strength and continued Chinese demand for US soya, traders said. Soya products were also called higher, with CBOT soyameal futures seen $2 to $4 per ton higher and soyaoil up 0.15 to 0.20 cent per lb.
But US crude oil futures were lower in early trade, a factor that could limit advances in the soya market. The overnight e-cbot trend for soyabeans was up 7 to 16 cents per bushel, with November up 12-1/4 at $10.45, a new three-year high for a spot soyabean contract.
The US Department of Agriculture said exporters sold 107,000 tonnes of US soyabeans to China for 2007/08. One trader estimated China had booked 1.5 million to 2 million tonnes of US soyabeans for shipment in January, despite high cost and freight premiums of about $3.40 to $3.50 per bushel.
The five main South American soyabean producers are likely to harvest a combined 119 million tonnes in 2007/08, up 3 million tonnes on the season, Hamburg-based oilseeds analyst Oil World said. But the figure is smaller than previously hoped.