US corn export premiums at the Gulf Coast held about steady on Friday amid quiet demand and tight old-crop supplies, traders said. Offers for nearby corn shipments were thin as old-crop stocks were difficult to source and exporters unwilling to risk booking new sales without coverage.
Nearby US corn prices not competitive with Brazilian, although Brazilian prices have risen this week. US Gulf corn shipped to Asia with a roughly $35 per tonne premium to Brazilian corn. CIF corn basis bids fluctuated wildly, with spot bids plunging 22 cents from Thursday's one-month highs before rebounding by more than half. Spot bids closed 10 cents lower on the day, but down just a penny on the week.
Traders dismissed rumours that some Brazilian corn was being imported into the United States. Loading delays in Brazil would only allow the corn to arrive in September, when new-crop US corn would be available. South Korea's MFG bought 70,000 tonnes of corn in a private deal, traders said.
Wheat export premiums at the US Gulf were steady to firm amid good demand and tight supplies in the marketing pipeline as farmers storing their unsold wheat after harvest, encouraged by wide carries in the futures market. US soft red winter wheat still among the least expensive on the global market.
China's official grain think tank cut its wheat crop forecast by about 2 percent due to widespread damage from a fungus disease, so greater imports were expected. China this week made its largest one-off SRW purchase in 8-1/2 years. Soyabean export premiums at the US Gulf were mostly steady, underpinned by solid demand from China, traders said.
Private exporters reported the sale of 382,000 tonnes of soyabeans, 262,000 tonnes of it to China for 2012/13 delivery and the rest to unknown destinations for 2011/12 shipment, and cancellation of 147,000 tonnes of soyabeans to China for delivery this year, USDA said on Friday.