Chicago | Reuters — U.S. soybean and wheat futures fell on Thursday while corn firmed slightly, with all three commodities closing well off their session peaks on a round of profit taking after rallying to their highest since mid-June, traders said.
Forecasts for improving crop weather in the U.S. Midwest added pressure.
CBOT November soybeans settled down 3-1/2 cents at $13.95-1/2 a bushel, shrugging off signs of strong export demand and support from a rally in the crude oil market (all figures US$).
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“Much like corn, soybeans are dealing with the profit-taking that followed the sharply higher session and the wetter western Corn Belt forecast,” Bevan Everett, risk management consultant at StoneX said in a note to clients.
The U.S. Agriculture Department on Thursday morning said soybean export sales totaled 1.763 million tonnes in the week ended June 24, the most since the week ended Jan. 21. It was also near the high end of forecasts for 900,000 to 2.3 million tonnes.
CBOT December corn futures were up 1/2 cent at $5.89 a bushel after peaking at $6.11-1/4.
Corn export sales totaled 82,500 tonnes, down from 527,100 a week earlier.
On Wednesday, corn futures climbed by their daily exchange-imposed limit after USDA pegged plantings of the crop at 92.692 million acres, below an average trade expectation of 93.787 million.
“The planting report raises supply concerns on longer term,” said Ole Houe, director of advisory services at brokerage IKON Commodities in Sydney.
CBOT September soft red winter wheat was down 14 cents at $6.65-1/2 a bushel.
— Mark Weinraub is a Reuters commodities correspondent in Chicago; additional reporting by Gus Trompiz in Paris and Naveen Thukral in Singapore.
