CHICAGO, Oct 7 (Reuters) - U.S. soybean futures rose on Friday, with bargain buying in focus after prices fell to their lowest since late July a day earlier, traders said.
Corn futures were also firm after posting a sharp decline on Thursday while wheat steadied, with rally attempts beaten back by concerns about export demand and a firm U.S. dollar.
At 11:22 a.m. CDT (1622 GMT), Chicago Board of Trade soybean futures for November delivery were up 7-3/4 cents at $13.65-3/4 a bushel.
The contract weakened early in the trading session but found support just above the 2-1/2 month low of $13.50 it hit on Thursday.
"The soybean market has become quite oversold and we could very well see some short covering going into the weekend," Tomm Pfitzenmaier, analyst for Summit Commodity Brokerage, said in a research note.
Strength in the crude oil market added support to soybeans but uncertainty about demand from China, the world's largest buyer of soybeans, kept the gains in check.
China's soybean imports are likely to drop to their lowest in more than two years this month, according to two traders and Ole Houe, director of advisory services at agriculture brokerage IKON Commodities in Sydney.
CBOT December corn futures were up 7-1/4 cents at $6.82-3/4 a bushel and CBOT December soft red winter wheat edged up 1/4 cent to $8.79-1/4 a bushel.
Wheat prices have been curbed since the summer by increasing volumes shipped from Ukraine through the Black Sea corridor. (Additional reporting by Naveen Thukral in Singapore and Gus Trompiz in Paris; Editing by Mark Potter and Emelia Sithole-Matarise)
