Soybeans Move Sideways in Chicago on Monday

After starting this Monday’s (26) trading session with considerable gains, soybean futures tested the positive side of the board and began to stabilize on the Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT) by early afternoon. Around 12:00 PM (Brasília time), the most traded contracts saw slight losses of 0.25 to 1.50 points, with November priced at $9.72 and March at $10.04 per bushel.

Soybean futures followed the losses seen in corn and wheat. However, the market found support in the strong rise of soybean oil, which gained nearly 2% in Chicago this Monday, in line with other oils and crude oil, which both saw advances of more than 3% today, in both WTI and Brent. The commodity was reflecting, among other factors, the escalating tensions in the Middle East.

The grain market is also responding to the numbers provided by the Pro Farmer Crop Tour last Friday (23), which indicated, after the close of trading in Chicago, that the soybean crop might be even larger than the USDA (United States Department of Agriculture) expects, with an estimated production of 129 million tons. "The Pro Farmer Crop Tour conveyed two key messages: there's a low likelihood of downward revisions in soybean and corn productivity in the USDA's September report and minimal to no pressure on the large short positions held by funds".