Chicago soybeans down on demand fears; corn, wheat rally on weak dollar

Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT) agricultural commodities closed mixed on Monday with soybeans continuing to slip as investors were worried about soy demand growth, while a weak U.S. dollar sent corn and wheat higher.

The most active corn contract for December delivery gained 3.25 cents, or 0.86 percent, to close at 3.805 U.S. dollars per bushel. December wheat delivery added 4 cents, or 0.79 percent, to close at 5.08 dollars per bushel. November soybeans lost 15.5 cents, or 1.74 percent, to close at 8.74 dollars per bushel.

Soybean prices extended losses on Monday following their recent decline triggered by concerns over soy demand as the world economy slowed down.

Meanwhile, a weaker U.S. dollar pushed CBOT corn, wheat futures higher. The U.S. Dollar Index Monday fell by more than 1 percent on the prospects that the Federal Reserve would probably postpone raising interest rates amid the current plunge of global financial market, supporting dollar-denominated agricultural commodities.

The weekly export inspections released by USDA on Monday showed that soybean inspections through the week ending Aug. 20 totaled 210,128 metric tons, down about 44 percent from the prior week; corn shipments were 883,987 tons, slightly down from the previous week; wheat exports totaled 277,992 tons, down more than 50 percent from the prior week.

Analysts said the U.S. wheat shipments were a bit weak, while soybeans and corn were within trade expectations. Endit