CHICAGO: Chicago corn and soybean futures prices crept up on Thursday, finding chart support after sharp losses over the past two sessions on higher-than-expected US grain supply forecasts.

It has been a rocky week for the corn and soybean markets. The US Department of Agriculture (USDA) on Tuesday released estimates of both crops in the United States that were above average analyst expectations, adding to supply pressure from a brisk start to the harvest season and sending futures prices plummeting.

But by Thursday, said traders, the market began steadying as investors showed some buying interest. Wheat futures, which were dragged lower on Tuesday by losses in corn, also inched upward, underpinned by strong demand from importers and tightening availability in major exporting countries.

"What we're seeing today is a dead cat bounce because we were too oversold," said Don Roose, president of US Commodities in West Des Moines, Iowa. Still, traders said they remain somewhat cautious about making big moves in grains due to uncertainty about what the export pace will be in the coming weeks.

"The supply side of the market is a bearish story," Roose said. "But we've been seeing buying over the last two days, and that could be bullish if export sales pick up on grains." US exporters sold 132,000 tonnes of soybeans for delivery to unknown destinations during the 2021/2022 marketing year, USDA reported on Thursday.

And on Wednesday, the agency said US exporters sold 330,000 tonnes of soybeans for delivery to China during the 2021/2022 marketing year, and 161,544 tonnes of corn for delivery to unknown destinations during the same period. The most-active corn contract on the Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT) was up 0.44% at $5.14-1/2 a bushel at 1440 GMT.

CBOT soybeans were up 0.44% at $12.00-1/2 a bushel, recovering from a 2021 low on Tuesday. CBOT wheat added 0.8% to $7.24-1/2, steadying after a two-week low in the previous session.