Basis bids for soyabeans shipped by barge to US Gulf Coast export terminals weakened on Thursday as futures climbed and as concerns about a prolonged shipping delay on the lower Ohio River eased, traders said. A backup of barges on the lower Ohio River is beginning to clear after the Army Corps of Engineers was able to successfully raise the wicket dam at lock 52, barge industry sources said. More than 80 barge tows had assembled there during a closure of several days that had halted barge shipments from the eastern Midwest, the sources said.
Soyabean barge bids remained inverted, with spot values at a premium to deferred bids owing to tight supplies of export-grade soyabeans at the Gulf and as shipping woes slowed the arrival of Midwestern supplies to blend with high-damage Delta soyabeans. Soya barges loaded in the first half of September were bid 54 cents a bushel above Chicago Board of Trade November futures after trading as high as 60 cents over futures on Wednesday. Last-half September barges were bid 40 cents over futures, down 2 cents.
FOB basis offers for soyabeans were level on solid demand for US supplies, with October and November shipments offered around 70 cents a bushel over futures. Net soyabean export sales topped trade expectations last week, according to US Department of Agriculture data on Thursday. The agency also confirmed private sales of 198,000 tonnes of US soyabeans to China for 2017/18 shipment. Corn CIF and FOB basis values were flat to lower. Wheat basis values were capped by light demand but underpinned by slow grain movement and thin supplies of high-protein wheat.
Bids for early September CIF corn barges were down 3 cents at 14 cents above the CBOT December futures contract. Spot FOB offers were about 40 cents over futures, down 4 cents. September barges of soft red winter wheat were bid around 30 cents over CBOT December futures and spot FOB offers at the Gulf were about 75 cents over December futures. CIF hard red winter wheat bids were 150 cents over the K.C. December contract for 12-percent protein grain. FOB basis offers for October vessels were around 185 cents over futures.