CANBERRA: Chicago soybean futures eased on Friday after reaching their highest in nearly a month in the previous session, on spillover strength from rallying vegetable oil markets, while corn and wheat futures were little changed.

Soybeans edge higher, but harvest pressure caps gains

However, all three were headed for weekly gains after days of turbulent trading that followed Donald Trump’s re-election as US president.

Fundamentals

• The most-active soybean contract on the Chicago Board of Trade was down 0.4% at $10.21-3/4 a bushel at 0200 GMT after reaching $10.28 on Thursday. It was on track for a 2.7% weekly gain.

• CBOT corn was up 0.1% at $4.27-3/4 a bushel and up 3.1% this week. Wheat was 0.2% higher at $5.72-1/2 a bushel and up 0.7% from last Friday’s close.

• CBOT soyoil futures soared to a four-month high on Thursday on solid export demand and expectations that Trump could impose tariffs on US imports of used cooking oil, increasing demand for domestic oil.

• Speculative and technical buying kicked in for soybeans as prices rose on Thursday, accelerating gains, brokers said.

• The market has shrugged off concerns that a Trump-sparked trade war with China could harm US farm exports, with traders saying sales were unlikely to be impacted until next summer’s harvests and importers could in fact increase buying before Trump takes office in January.

• US soybeans and corn are currently enjoying a solid export demand, with the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) on Thursday reporting the latest in a string of corn sales.

• However, improving crop weather in Argentina and top producer Brazil has eased production concerns. * Separately, the USDA said US farmers were likely to expand plantings of corn while reducing soybean and wheat seedings for the upcoming marketing year.

• CBOT wheat has been under pressure from crop-boosting rains in dry US growing areas, with more rainfall expected this week, weather firm Maxar said.