eCBOT Close

The overnight eCBOT session closed with nearby July beans remaining the star of the show, 10 1/2 cents higher at $12.25 1/2. Further forward months closed with more modest gains as the trade readies itself for what it perceives to be a bearish new-crop USDA report.

Corn and wheat closed 3-4 cents higher. Corn was supported by ideas that the USDA will cut it's planted area to 84.158 million acres from 84.986 million in March and 85.982 million in 2008. Wheat benefited from ideas that spring acres will be trimmed and short-covering.

Last night's planting progress report shows that 4% of intended soybean acreage remains unplanted. The same report had the winter wheat harvest at 40% compared to 46% on the five year average. Spring wheat crop conditions good/excellent fell one point and poor/very poor increased one point.

Crude oil was higher throughout most of the session, but has just eased off a little in the last hour. More militant strikes on pipelines in Nigeria being supportive.

The Dow closed 90.99 points higher Monday and is expected to continue in that vein at the opening today. European stocks are also mostly a little higher.

Now we are sitting tight waiting for the USDA at 13.30 BST. A quick recap of what is expected:

US soybean acreage is estimated at 78.305 million and ending stocks are forecast at 585 million bushels.

Traders are looking for corn acres to come in at 84.158 million, with quarterly ending stocks at 4.19 billion bushels.

All wheat acreage is estimated at 58.337 million, spring wheat is pegged at 13.102 million, and quarterly ending stocks at 670 million bushels.