SYDNEY, Aug 23: U.S. Soybeans rose nearly 1 percent on Friday and recouped most of the losses suffered in the previous session as weaker-than-expected findings from a widely watched crop tour escalated fears over domestic production shortfalls.
Corn rose, rebounding from sharp losses in the previous session, while wheat fell for the second consecutive day.
Chicago Board of Trade November soybeans rose 0.91 percent to $12.98-1/2 a bushel by 0246 GMT, having closed down 1.3 percent on Thursday when wet weather eased fears over the potential crop for both beans and corn.
December corn rose 0.75 percent to $4.68 a bushel, rebounding from losses of 3.9 percent in the previous session, the biggest daily slide for the contract in nearly two months.
Meteorologists reported better-than-expected rains on Thursday across the Midwest.
‘Corn and soybeans are experiencing a rebound from yesterday’s dramatic decline, which in my opinion was an overreaction,’ said Joyce Liu, investment analyst at Phillip Futures in Singapore.
‘Traders sold down on the grains because of the rain relief, but it is nowhere near sufficient to change the outlook for the grains. We need more rains and more moderate temperatures,’ Liu added.
Analysts said soybeans drew support from disappointing findings from The Pro Farmer Midwest Crop Tour, which pegged the average number of soybean pods per 3-by-3 foot plot in top producer Iowa at 927 pods, down from the tour’s count of 1,000 pods last year and the tour’s three-year average of 1,190 pods.
The weak findings follow similar earlier findings of Pro Farmer in Illinois.
Analysts said the tour’s findings continue to add support to the oilseed market, which has firmed nearly 10 percent in the past two weeks on the back of concerns over dry weather.
The tour findings, though, capped the rebound in corn, traders said.
The tour projected the average corn yield in Iowa at 171.9 bushels per acre, up from a drought-reduced 137.3 bpa last year and above the tour’s three-year average of 157.1 bpa for the top U.S. Corn state.
The tour also calculated Minnesota’s average corn yield at 181.1 bpa, compared with 156.2 bpa last year and the three-year average of 172.5 bpa.
Despite the findings buoying expectations for a bumper crop, traders continue to remain concerned over potential weather damage, which has driven weekly gains for the grain of nearly 1 percent.
(AGENCIES)
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