US soyabean futures rallied to their highest level in nearly two months on Thursday supported by thin supplies in the country, traders said. Wheat prices also gapped higher, gaining 2.3 percent, as traders covered short positions ahead of the US Agriculture Department’s report on this year’s wheat harvest.
Corn followed wheat and soyabeans higher even as planters rolled across the US Midwest, allowing many farmers to make their best progress of the weather-delayed seeding seeding season. A firmer cash market – basis values were trending near record levels at soyabean processors – provided a pillar of support to futures prices. Better-than-expected export demand added additional strength.
“What this boils down to is just tight supplies,” said Dewey Strickler, president of Ag Watch Market Advisors, a grain industry consultancy. At 10:48 am CDT (1548 GMT), the most-active Chicago Board of Trade July soyabean contract was up 14-1/2 cents at $14.05-1/4 a bushel.
Prices briefly passed through a key technical resistance point at their 100-day moving average during the session but failed to hold support above that level. The May soyabean contract, which is in the delivery period, was up 17-1/2 cents at $14.96-1/2 a bushel and hit its highest level since March 11 on Thursday.
CBOT July soft red winter wheat was 15-3/4 cents higher at $7.21-3/4 a bushel. Analysts were expecting the USDA report on Friday to show that 2013 US winter wheat production will fall 9 percent from a year ago in its first official estimate of the 2013 crop. CBOT July corn was 8-3/4 cents higher at $6.41-3/4 a bushel.
