US soyabean futures climbed more than 1 percent on Tuesday, scrambling back above $10 a bushel on worries about poor weather threatening yield prospects in Argentina. Corn futures were steady to fractionally lower while wheat futures sagged on sluggish export demand for US supplies.
As of 12:20 p.m. CST (1820 GMT), Chicago Board of Trade January soyabeans were up 12-3/4 cents at $10.11-1/4 per bushel after reaching $10.15, the highest spot price on a continuous chart since July 25. CBOT March corn was down 1/4 cent at $3.53-1/4 a bushel and March wheat was down 3-1/2 cents at $4.31-3/4.
Soyabeans rose on worries about dry conditions in Argentina, the world's third-largest soya producer and the top exporter of soyameal and soyaoil. "The 6- 10-day forecast remains very dry, with no precipitation expected across the growing areas in Argentina. As a result, soil moisture should decline across the corn and soyabean growing areas over the next 10 days," MDA Weather Services said in a note to clients.
Deferred CBOT soyameal futures set life-of-contract highs, including the March and May 2018 contracts. The uncertainty surrounding Argentine crop prospects fueled hopes that China, the world's biggest soyabean importer, might start booking more US soya cargoes. Sales of US soyabeans in the 2017-18 marketing year begun Sept. 1 have lagged the year-ago pace. Wheat futures sagged on technical selling and a lack of export demand for US supplies.