US corn futures extended their slide on Tuesday, erasing early gains and drifting to fresh four-year lows as favourable weather forecasts bolstered expectations for a bumper harvest, traders said. Wheat followed corn lower, but soyabeans were mixed, with nearby contracts higher on fresh export demand for US soyabeans and soyameal that should keep old-crop supplies tight until the autumn harvest.
At the Chicago Board of Trade as of 12:40 pm CDT (1740 GMT), September corn was down 2-1/2 cents at $3.61-1/2 per bushel after falling to $3.60-3/4, the lowest spot price since 2010. Most-active December corn was down 3 cents at $3.69 after setting a contract low at $3.68-3/4. The US Department of Agriculture late on Monday rated 76 percent of the US corn crop in good to excellent condition, the highest for this time of year in a decade. Some analysts are projecting a national corn yield of 170 bushels an acre, above the USDA's current forecast for a record-high 165.3.
Wheat fell on rising global inventories and strong competition for export business as the Northern Hemisphere harvest progresses. CBOT September wheat was down 3-1/2 cents at $5.26-1/2 a bushel but held above its contract low set on Monday at $5.23-3/4. In soyabeans, nearby contracts rose, with spot August up 16-1/4 cents at $11.92 a bushel on export demand and tight supplies of US old-crop soyabeans. The USDA on Monday reported sales of 120,000 tonnes of US soyabeans to China for delivery in the 2013/14 marketing year ending August 31. The sale helped the August hold above a contract low set last week at $11.53-1/4.