CHICAGO: US soyabean futures surged to two-year highs on Wednesday on continued export demand from top global soya buyer China and fund-driven buying, analysts said.
Corn and wheat futures followed soyabeans higher, with additional support from a more than 4% jump in US crude oil prices. Corn and soyaoil sometimes follow energy prices due to their role as feed stocks for ethanol and soya-based biodiesel fuel.
As of 12:42 p.m. CDT (1742 GMT), Chicago Board of Trade November soyabean futures were up 18-1/2 cents at $10.10 per bushel after reaching $10.12-1/4, a life-of-contract top and the highest price for a most-active contract on a continuous chart since June 2018.
CBOT December corn was up 3-1/2 cents at $3.69-1/2 a bushel but stayed below Monday's six-month peak of $3.71. December wheat was up 3-1/4 cents at $5.41-1/2 a bushel.
Soyabeans led the way up, extending gains after the US Department of Agriculture confirmed private sales of 327,000 tonnes of US soyabeans to China. The USDA has announced US soya sales to China in each of the last nine business days.
Technical buying accelerated as the CBOT November contract pushed above its previous contract high of $10.08-3/4.
"Soyabeans lead the grain and oilseed complex higher as fund money pours in ... on expectations of a tightening balance sheet as crop yields decline and demand increases in China," StoneX analyst Arlan Suderman wrote in a client note.
Corn followed soyabeans higher. Some traders are considering whether the roughly $1.30-a-bushel rally in soyabean futures since mid-August will encourage US farmers to plant more soya and less corn for 2021, a supportive factor for deferred corn futures.
A Farm Futures producers' survey conducted in late July and released on Wednesday projected a 4.9% rise in US 2021 soyabean seedings and an 0.3% drop in corn acres.
"There is going to be acreage competition between beans and corn ... We have not seen that for a couple of years," said Dan Cekander, president of DC Analysis.
Wheat followed the firm trend, with the CBOT December contract rebounding from a three-week low.
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