eCBOT Close, Early Call

eCBOT grains closed mixed, with beans 1-2 cents higher and corn & wheat 4-5 cents lower.

Having been in negative territory for most of the morning, soybeans staged a mini rally late in the session to close with modest gains.

Falling equities, crude oil and a stronger dollar pressured the grain sector lower throughout most of the morning.

Ideas however that tomorrow's USDA reports will cut Argentine soybean production and tighten old-crop US ending stocks to around 170 million bushels, enabled beans to post modest gains at the close.

Tomorrow's weekly export sales reports will be scrutinised for evidence that China may not be switched purchases to South America quite as much as normal for this time of year.

A hard freeze in the Southern Plains may have caused some damage to winter wheat in Kansas, Oklahoma and even parts of Texas.

Early calls for this afternoon's CBOT session: Corn futures expected to open 3 to 5 lower; soybeans 1 to 2 higher; wheat 3 to 4 lower.