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Soybeans and corn fall on forecasts of Argentina rain
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Spillover pressure weakens wheat
HAMBURG, Jan 23 (Reuters) - Chicago soybean futures fell again on Monday, touching their lowest in around two weeks as expectations of rain in Argentina's parched growing areas eased concerns over crop damage.
Argentine rain put pressure on corn and falls in both corn and soybean prices also undermined wheat.
Chicago Board of Trade most-active soybeans fell 1.0% to $14.91-3/4 a bushel at 1139 GMT, after hitting their lowest since Jan. 11 at $14.90-3/4 earlier on Monday.
Corn fell 0.6% to $6.71-3/4 a bushel. Wheat dropped 0.9% to $7.34-1/4 a bushel.
“Soybeans and corn are being pushed down by forecasts of more rain in Argentina which will be very welcome for Argentine crops after drought which has been a major factor in the market in past weeks,” said Matt Ammermann, StoneX commodity risk manager.
“With more rain forecast in Argentina in coming days, we may start to see a feeling in the market that the drought risk to Argentine crops has now been priced in and maybe some risk premium should now be removed.”
Forecasts are for more rain in Argentina both this week and next week.
“We could start seeing more focus on the generally bearish fundamentals in the soybean market, with a record crop expected in Brazil,” Ammermann said.
“China is celebrating the Lunar New Year so we are unlikely to see supportive buying by the Chinese this week. China is anyway switching its import purchasing to Brazil’s new crop.”
Along with spillover weakness from corn and soybeans, wheat is also facing pressure from a good mix of rain and snow in the U.S. southern Plains which is positive for U.S. crops, he said.
“The small spread between wheat and corn prices is also gaining attention," Ammermann said. "Some will say either wheat is too cheap or corn too expensive.” (Reporting by Michael Hogan in Hamburg, additional reporting by Naveen Thukral in Singapore; Editing by Jane Merriman)
