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Chicago agricultural commodities settle mixed

Xinhua, February 22, 2017 Adjust font size:

Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT) grains futures close mixed on Tuesday, with soybean futures heading lower for a third straight session, reversing from early strength to touch a two-week low on expectations for large South American soy harvests.

Wheat futures were also lower, while corn firmed, supported by export demand and technical buying.

The most active corn contract for March delivery rose 1 cent, or 0.27 percent, to 3.6925 U.S. dollars per bushel. May wheat delivery fell 5.75 cents, or 1.26 percent, to 4.4975 dollars per bushel. March soybeans dropped 6.25 cents, or 0.61 percent, to 10.2625 dollars per bushel.

In other markets, the Brent crude oil market was 0.61 dollar per barrel higher, the U.S. dollar strengthening, and the Dow Jones Industrials rising by 108 points.

Dustin Johnson, EHedger's senior strategist, said that the funds came to the rescue of corn.

"The funds were adding corn long last week. It looks like this is a continuation of that. We are seeing it in the spreads as well. Dec-Dec climbed 2 cents today. Other than that, I don't see a fundamental shift as to why," he added.

Early support in soybeans stemmed from fears that heavy weekend rains in Argentina could threaten yield prospects, but local weather analysts said the moisture was probably beneficial for crops.

Favorable weather in Brazil, which is forecast to harvest a record-large soybean crop, added to bearish sentiment.

A stronger dollar added pressure, making U.S. wheat less attractive on the global market. The dollar gained on market expectations that the Federal Reserve might raise benchmark U.S. interest rates in March.

However, weekly export data from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) was supportive. The government reported export inspections of U.S. wheat in the latest week at 558,252 tonnes, topping a range of trade expectations for 350,000 to 550,000 tonnes.

Corn turned higher after a choppy start, supported by technical buying and fresh export demand.

The USDA said private exporters in the last day of last week sold 269,296 tonnes of U.S. corn to Japan and another 111,200 tonnes of U.S. corn to unknown destinations.

Traders were looking to acreage forecasts from the USDA's annual outlook forum this week to gauge an expected drop in U.S. wheat sowings and a shift from corn towards soybeans. Endit