Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Board of Trade soybean futures weakened on Friday, giving up gains made overnight on a lack of export news despite top buyer China returning to the market after a week-long holiday, traders said.
Corn futures followed a similar trajectory and closed near session lows as investors waited for the U.S. Agriculture Department’s production forecast on Tuesday.
Wheat futures were mixed, with winter wheat contracts falling while spring wheat offerings firmed on tight stocks of high-protein supplies.
Chicago Board of Trade November soybean futures were settled down 4-1/4 cents at $12.43 a bushel and CBOT December corn was off 3-1/2 cents at $5.30-1/2 a bushel (all figures US$).
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Harvest pressure weighed on both commodities as forecasts called for good weather for fieldwork in key western areas of the U.S. Midwest this weekend.
“Yield reports are generally at or above expectations for the western corn belt, where harvest is still occurring,” Charlie Sernatinger, global head of grain futures at ED+F Man Capital, said in a note to clients.
CBOT December soft red winter wheat was 7-1/4 cents lower at $7.34 a bushel, while MGEX spring wheat for December delivery was up 4-1/4 cents at $9.46-1/2 a bushel. The front-month MGEX contract was near its highest on a continuous basis since November 2012.
— Mark Weinraub is a Reuters commodities correspondent in Chicago; additional reporting by Naveen Thukral in Singapore and Gus Trompiz in Paris.
