BEIJING- Chicago soybean futures slipped on Wednesday while corn traded flat, as rain forecasts for key grower Argentina eased concerns over dryness, with a lack of demand also weighing on the markets.
Wheat edged higher, supported by lower wheat ratings in Kansas, the top US winter wheat producer.
The most-active soybean contract on the Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT) was down 0.1 percent at $9.96-2/8 a bushel, while corn was unchanged at $4.58.
“From a fundamental point of view, there is an expectation of rainfall in Argentina, which will help crops which have been parched after a particularly poor December in terms of rainfall,” said Andrew Whitelaw at agricultural consultants Episode 3 in Canberra.
Concerns over dryness had pushed prices higher earlier this week, but forecasts of rain over the next 11-15 days eased some worries about crop damage.
Weaker US corn and soybean export sales data and lower-than-expected December export projections for Brazil also weighed on the markets, said Cheang Kang Wei, assistant vice president at StoneX in Singapore.
“This lack of demand, particularly from major markets like China, where crushers are already heavily covered, has exerted significant downward pressure on prices,” he said.
