Following are US trade expectations for the opening of grain and soya complex trading at the Chicago Board of Trade at 8:30 a.m. CDT (1330 GMT) on Friday. Wheat steady to down 2 cents per bushel. Wheat seen weaker after most-active contract hit three-month high on Thursday. Soft red winter wheat futures have risen in four of the previous five trading days. Concerns about crop production in Australia and Argentina limit downside risk.
Consolidation trade for the benchmark CBOT December soft red winter wheat contract noted around the high end of its 20-day Bollinger range during the overnight trading session. The US Agriculture Department on Thursday morning said export sales of wheat totaled 395,100 tonnes in the week ended Oct. 10, in line with analysts' forecasts that ranged from 250,000 tonnes to 550,000 tonnes but below the prior week's total of 521,940 tonnes.
Australia's wheat production this year is expected to drop to 15.5 million tonnes, according to National Australia Bank well below the market's expectations of around 19 million tonnes last month. CBOT December soft red winter wheat last traded down 1-1/4 cents at $5.24-1/4 per bushel. K.C. December hard red winter wheat was last down 1-1/4 cents at $4.30, and MGEX December spring wheat was last down 1-1/2 cents at $5.50-1/2. Corn down 2 cents to 4 cents per bushel. Weak export demand hangs over corn market as well as pressure from ongoing harvest in US Midwest. Forecasts call for rain this weekend, which will slow farmers who have made good progress in recent days.
Consolidation for the CBOT December corn contract dropped below the 10-day moving average. Corn export sales came in at 368,500 tonnes for the week, below forecasts that ranged from 400,000 tonnes to 800,000 tonnes. A week ago, USDA said corn export sales were 284,456 tonnes. The CBOT December corn last traded down 2-3/4 cents at $3.92 per bushel.
Soyabeans steady to up 2 cents per bushel. Consolidation trade expected as investors wait for details about size of agriculture purchases in potential trade detail between China and the United States. USDA said weekly soyabean export sales totaled 1.601 million tonnes, down from 2.095 million tonnes a week ago. Analysts' forecasts for soyabean export sales ranged from 900,000 to 1.6 million tonnes. CBOT November soyabeans last traded up 1/2 cent at $9.32 per bushel.