By Kirk Maltais

--Wheat for March delivery fell 2% to $6.14 1/4 a bushel on the Chicago Board of Trade Monday as grains traders took profits amid speculation that Argentina's port-worker strike may reach a conclusion after a meeting tomorrow.

--Soybeans for March delivery fell 0.6% to $12.57 1/4 a bushel.

--Corn for March delivery rose 1.2% to $4.56 1/2 a bushel.

HIGHLIGHTS

Poised For Pullback: After rising for much of the month, most-active wheat futures closed down for a second consecutive session. Argentina's port worker strike has helped wheat futures move higher in recent weeks, but continued upside doesn't appear to have support, said RJO Futures. "The wheat market is technically overbought, and it has been following the other grain markets higher, so the market is poised for a pullback," said the firm. Before sliding 3% over the past two sessions, wheat had risen 8.4% in December.

Stemming The Strike: After starting higher Monday, CBOT grain futures turned lower throughout the day on speculation the Argentinian government will reach an agreement with port workers to end a strike. "Fresh U.S. daily export sales of soybeans, corn and soy oil could not counter fund selling tied to the likelihood that Argentine [government] intervention will resolve the 19-day stevedore/crush strike," said AgResource. Should the strike be resolved when the two sides meet Tuesday, then that will allow buyers like China to resume fulfilling grain export needs via South American supply.

INSIGHTS

Prepping for 2021: Grain traders are expected to spend the majority of the four active trading sessions this week getting positions in order ahead of the end of the month and year, said Karl Setzer of AgriVisor. "This week's trade will be thin, and this positioning can easily cause exaggerated movement in the futures market," said Mr. Setzer. Additionally fueling movement is preparation for January's WASDE report from the USDA, which has gained in importance among traders after the USDA did not update its corn forecasts in last month's report.

Back in the Saddle: The USDA confirmed large sales of 2020/21 marketing year soybeans and soybean products to unknown destinations Monday - with 233,700 metric tons of soybeans sold, and 33,000 tons of soybean oil. Additionally, the USDA confirmed that 125,000 tons of soybeans were sold for the 2021/22 marketing year to unknown destinations, and 149,572 tons of corn were sold to unknown destinations. It's the first confirmation of U.S. grain export flash sales since December 11.

Inspection Drop: Export inspections of U.S. soybeans have fallen considerably from their levels in previous weeks - with inspections totaling 1.45 million metric tons. That's roughly half of the soybean exports inspected last week, although still higher than inspections from this time last year. China continues to be the main destination for U.S. soybeans, with 882,102 tons being inspected for export to the Chinese mainland. Thailand and Mexico were the next biggest destinations, with roughly 97,000 tons each inspected for export.

AHEAD:

--The EIA releases its weekly update on ethanol production and inventories at 10:30 a.m. ET Wednesday.

--The USDA releases its monthly agricultural prices report at 3 p.m. ET Wednesday.

--The USDA will release its latest weekly export sales numbers at 8:30 a.m. ET Thursday.

--The Chicago Board of Trade will be closed Friday in observance of the New Years Day holiday. It will reopen on Monday, Jan. 4.

Write to Kirk Maltais at kirk.maltais@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

12-28-20 1549ET