US soyabean, wheat and corn futures rose on Wednesday, clawing back some of the losses from earlier in the week on renewed worries about crops in the USS Midwest hit hard by drought Soyabeans were up 2.4 percent as the market edged back toward record highs set late last week. Wheat jumped 2.8 percent, nearing a four-year high.
Some rain was in the forecast for the next 10 days in northern and eastern parts of the Corn Belt, but large production areas in Iowa, Illinois and Nebraska were expected to remain parched. "The reality of it is we are going to have to see how much rain we are going to actually get," said Sterling Smith, analyst with Citigroup said. "The drought is not over yet."
Better-than-average rainfall was expected next week in Minnesota, Wisconsin, Indiana, Ohio and Kentucky, and in east-central Illinois, predicted Don Keeney, meteorologist for MDA EarthSat Weather. Some rain also was expected in northern and eastern areas this week, but crops in the rest of the growing region will struggle against extreme heat and drought.
Chicago Board of Trade November soyabeans rose 39-1/2 cents to $16.09 a bushel by 10:43 am CDT (1543 GMT). CBOT December corn was 9-1/4 cents higher at $7.87-1/2 a bushel and CBOT September wheat gained 24 cents to $9.02-3/4 a bushel.