SINGAPORE: Chicago soybeans futures slid on Wednesday, giving up some of the gains from the previous session, as the prospect of record crop in Brazil weighed on the market.
Wheat inched higher on concerns over tightening world supplies, while corn nudged lower.
“Global soybean supplies are burdensome, Brazil is going to have a big crop. We expect prices to remain under pressure, said one agricultural trader in Singapore.
“The wheat market is getting tighter as far as supplies are concerned.”
The most-active soybean contract on the Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT) was down 0.6% at $9.85-1/2 a bushel, as of 0403 GMT. Wheat edged 0.1% higher to $5.48 a bushel and corn also slid 0.1% to $4.32 a bushel.
Brazilian soybean growers are expected to reap an enormous crop, while rains across Argentina’s agricultural heartland have brought much-needed moisture to the soil as farmers are planting.
The soybean market is trapped in a narrow range as traders weighed a recent rise in US export sales against heavy global supplies and concerns about the incoming Trump administration’s hawkish approach to trade with top soybean importer China.
Tightening global wheat supplies are supporting prices with crop damage in Australia heightening worries.
Chicago soybeans recoup losses
Heavy rainfall has hit Australia’s bumper wheat harvest causing widespread quality downgrades, traders and analysts said, increasing the prospect of tightening global supply.
Farmers in Australia, the world’s fourth-biggest wheat exporter, are wrapping up an above-average harvest and providing much-needed supplies to the world market but rain over the last two weeks has doused crops and more wet weather is forecast.
Concerns about a struggling agriculture sector weighed on the grains markets after Cargill announced plans to lay off 5% of its workforce due to falling revenue.
Meanwhile, ADM warned of a challenging 2025, and Tyson revealed another closure of one of its meat processing plants.
Commodity funds were net buyers of CBOT soybean, soymeal and wheat futures contracts on Tuesday and net sellers of corn and soyoil, traders said.