Chicago | Reuters — U.S. corn and soybean futures rebounded on Friday in an end-of-week technical and bargain buying bounce from steep losses the previous day.

Corn received an additional boost from the U.S. Agriculture Department’s (USDA) confirmation of large sales to China for a fourth straight day, lifting the market to its first weekly gain in three weeks.

Wheat, however, slid for a third straight session and touched its lowest point of 2021 as improving winter crop conditions in the U.S. Plains and signs of a larger-than-anticipated Russian harvest weighed on prices.

Grain traders continue to monitor crop weather in South America, as well as high-level talks between the U.S. and China this week, as they look ahead to crucial USDA spring plantings and stocks data due at the end of the month.

“We’re seeing some technical buying, and there’s very strong fundamental news in corn with the export sales this week. But there’s also concern that the U.S.-China talks are not going very well,” said Brian Hoops, president of brokerage Midwest Market Solutions.

In a fourth straight daily sales announcement, USDA reported 800,000 tonnes in additional U.S. corn sales to China on Friday, taking total sales confirmed this week to nearly 3.9 million tonnes.

Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT) May corn jumped 11-1/4 cents to $5.57-3/4 a bushel and posted a weekly gain of 3.5 per cent (all figures US$).

May soybean futures added 24 cents to $14.16-1/4 a bushel and posted their fifth weekly gain in six weeks.

CBOT May wheat fell 3-1/2 cents to $6.27 a bushel after sinking to a low of $6.21-3/4, its lowest since Dec. 30. Wheat dropped by 1.8 per cent in the week in a third consecutive weekly decline.

— Reporting for Reuters by Karl Plume in Chicago; additional reporting by Gus Trompiz in Paris and Naveen Thukral in Singapore.