US soyabean futures rose on Thursday, led by gains in new-crop contracts, on a smaller-than-expected acreage forecast from the US government, traders said. Chicago Board of Trade soyabeans for November delivery , which track the crop that will be planted in the spring, peaked at $11.46-3/4 a bushel, their highest since December 31, and closed just a 1/4 cent lower than the session high. Prices briefly broke through their 100-day moving average but closed below that key technical benchmark.
The US Agriculture Department on Thursday morning forecast US soyabean plantings for the 2014/15 crop year at a record 79.5 million acres, 3 million acres more than a year earlier but lower than most market watchers were expecting. Argentina's agriculture ministry said the country's 2013/14 soyabean plantings were likely 20.3 million hectares, down from its January estimate of 20.8 million.
Analysts were expecting a US Agriculture Department report on Friday morning to show soyabean export sales were in a range from 150,000 to 500,000 tonnes (old-crop and new-crop combined) in the week ended February 13. Export sales of soyabeans were 296,200 tonnes in the previous week.