eCBOT Close, Early Call

The overnights closed higher, with soybeans leading the charge finishing with gains of around 20-22 cents. Corn closed around 4 higher, with wheat up 2-3.

A weaker dollar, firm crude provided some positive outside influences.

News that the Argy senate was to extend President Cristina Fernandez's powers to set export taxes on grains, resurrected uncomfortable memories of roadblocks and sales embargoes by militant Argy farmers.

A cold US weather outlook for the weekend is also keeping traders nervous.

News from a crop tour doing the rounds in the US seems perhaps to favour corn to be the most likely crop to chip in with bumper yields this season. Some of the comments on beans have been a little more guarded.

Early calls for the final session of the week, which can't come bloody soon enough for me, are: corn called 2 to 4 higher; soybeans called 18 to 22 higher; wheat called flat to 2 higher.