CHICAGO: Chicago soybean futures fell on Thursday after five sessions higher, pressured by technical resistance and beneficial forecasts for rain in top export competitor Brazil. Wheat eased from a two-week high hit earlier on Thursday as weaker crude oil prices and a firmer U.S. dollar offset tightening global supplies.
Corn edged lower, supported by a daily export notice and higher input costs heading into next year. The most-active soybean contract on the Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT) fell 21-1/4 cents to $12.24-1/4 a bushel by 11:30 a.m. (1630 GMT).
Wheat fell 8-1/4 cents to $7.41, after hitting 7.52-1/2 overnight, its highest since Oct. 7. Corn eased 7-3/4 cents to $5.31-1/2 a bushel. South American soybean crops look to benefit from rains forecast across Argentina and Brazil in the coming 6-10 days.
"If you're putting some subsoil moisture down in Brazil," said Kristi Van Ahn-Kjeseth, Chief Operating Officer of consulting firm Van Ahn and Company, Inc. "That's going to do wonders for them on their bean crop."
Technical resistance for the most-active soybean contract at the 20-and-50-day moving averages also added pressure. U.S. soybean export sales for the week ended Oct. 7 were 2.88 million tonnes, primarily due to sales to China, beating trade expectations, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
Corn losses were eased by a daily export sale of 130,000 tonnes of corn to Mexico, as well as strong weekly ethanol production. Corn markets were also underpinned by concerns of rising fertilizer prices, which will impact corn more than soybeans, as farmers consider planting decisions for the 2022 season. "I think the inputs story is really what's keeping support under the corn market," said Andrew Jackson, broker at Producers Hedge, LLC. "There are growers seriously considering going heavier beans next year."