SINGAPORE, Dec 9 (Reuters) - Chicago soybean futures fell on Friday, but the contract hovered close to its highest since mid-September as strong demand — led by top importer China — limited the losses.
While soybeans are likely to post a weekly gain, wheat is on track for a fifth consecutive weekly decline and corn is down for a second straight week.
FUNDAMENTALS
* The most-active soybean contract on the Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT) slid 0.1% to $14.85-1/2 a bushel, as of 0112 GMT, wheat added 0.3% to $7.48-3/4 a bushel, and corn lost quarter of a cent to $6.42-1/4 a bushel.
* For the week, soybeans are up 3.2%, wheat is down 1.5% and corn has given up around half a percent.
* U.S. exporters on Thursday morning reported sales of 118,000 tonnes of soybeans to China and 718,000 tonnes of soybeans to unknown destinations for delivery in the 2022/23 marketing year.
* This marks the third flash sale of soybeans to China this week, spurring broader hopes that easing COVID-19 lockdown measures in China will boost demand for U.S. commodities.
* For the week ended Dec. 1, export sales of soybeans totalled 1.746 million tonnes, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) said, beating the high end of trade forecasts that ranged from 600,000 to 1.45 million tonnes.
* Argentina's estimated area for 2022/23 soybeans could be cut due to the effects of prolonged drought in the region, the Buenos Aires Grains Exchange said on Wednesday.
* The move in grains were limited as traders awaited monthly world crop forecasts from the USDA on Friday.
* Export demand for U.S. wheat continues to languish, with 189,800 tonnes sold in the week ended Dec. 1, near the low end of analysts' forecasts ranging from 150,000 to 400,000 tonnes.
* Corn export sales for the week totalled 691,600 tonnes, in line with analysts' estimates for 300,000 to 1.075 million tonnes.
* Brazil's total grain crop is expected to reach a record 312.2 million tonnes, government food and statistics agency Conab said on Thursday, up 15% from the previous year though slightly down from a previous estimate of 313.04 million tonnes.
* Commodity funds were net buyers of CBOT soybean, soymeal, corn and soyoil futures contracts on Thursday and net sellers of wheat futures, traders said.
MARKET NEWS
* World stocks rose and oil prices initially rebounded on Thursday on hopes that China's easing of its anti-COVID-19 measures will help restore global supply chains and curb inflation.
DATA/EVENTS (GMT) 0130 China PPI, CPI YY Nov 1330 US PPI Machine Manuf'ing Nov 1500 US U Mich Sentiment Prelim Dec 1700 US Federal Reserve issues quarterly financial accounts of the United States (Reporting by Naveen Thukral; editing by Uttaresh.V)
