Chicago Close - Monday

26/09/11 -- Soybeans: Nov 11 Soybeans closed at USD12.59 3/4, up 1 3/4 cents; Jan 12 Soybeans closed at USD12.71 1/4, up 2 1/4 cents; Oct 11 Soybean Meal closed at USD326.20, up USD0.20; Oct 11 Soybean Oil closed at 52.22, down 18 points. Nov beans recovered from an 11-month low of USD12.26 in overnight Globex trade, yet also finished off session highs. Export Inspections of 7.418 million bushels were disappointing. The USDA pegged crop conditions as 53% good/excellent, unchanged from a week ago. Harvesting is only 5% complete, versus 15% a year ago and 11% normally.

Corn: Dec 11 Corn closed at USD6.48, up 9 1/2 cents; Mar 12 Corn closed at USD6.61 1/4, up 9 1/4 cents. As with beans corn recovered from overnight lows but also closed off the day session highs. In Globex trade prices reached their lowest level since July 2010. Export Inspections of 34.282 million bushels were above expectations and there was a bit of optimism that ailing European banks might get shored up by the IMF/EU. After the close the USDA raised good/excellent crop conditions one point to 52%, with harvest progress running at 15%. Funds bought 9,000 contracts on the day.

Wheat: Dec 11 CBOT Wheat closed at USD6.48 1/4, up 7 1/2 cents; Dec 11 KCBT Wheat closed at USD7.44, up 12 3/4 cents; Dec 11 MGEX Wheat closed at USD8.70, up 19 cents. Minneapolis wheat led, although it too also closed well off session highs, on tight supplies and ideas that the USDA will reflect that in Friday's numbers. Dryness on the southern Plains continues to hamper planting progress which is seen as 26% done versus 35% normally at this time. Export Inspections of 21.605 million bushels were in line with trade estimates of 18-27 million.