US grain and soya futures jumped early on Tuesday as investors sunk money into commodities, traders and analysts said. The buying carried nearby soyabeans to the highest price for a front-month contract since November 2014. Nearby soyabean meal reached its highest price since July 2015 and the most active contract hit levels not seen since December 2014.
The advances were "really more of a capital flow issue more than anything else," said Steve Erdman, president of broker EFG Group in Chicago. July soyabeans were up 1.4 percent at $10.79-3/4 a bushel by 12:30 pm CDT (1730 GMT) at the Chicago Board of Trade, while July soyameal gained 2 percent to $368.40 per short ton. July corn was up 0.4 percent to $3.95-1/2 after setting the highest price for a most-active contract in almost a month. July wheat was up 1.3 percent at $4.81, following a move to $4.84-1/2, a two-week high for the most-active contract.
Prices have climbed over the past two months after the most actively traded soyabeans hit a six-year low in November, as concerns have emerged about poor crop weather hurting harvests in South America. The damage is expected to shift export demand to the United States from rival shippers Brazil and Argentina. In Brazil, growers of winter corn must renegotiate delivery contracts for forward sales, curtailing exports of the grain, after dry weather caused severe losses to the crop, specialists said. Farmers there will begin harvesting the winter crop in the coming weeks, and the heaviest losses are expected in the leading two producer states of Mato Grosso and Goias, which together account for half of the national output.