Chicago Quiet Ahead Of Thursday's USDA Reports
07/02/12 -- Soybeans: Mar 12 Soybeans closed at USD12.32, down 1 cent; Nov 12 Soybeans closed at USD12.41 1/4, up 2 1/4 cents; Mar 12 Soybean Meal closed at USD325.40, down USD2.10; Mar 12 Soybean Oil closed at 52.17, up 1 point. This was a pretty featureless session ahead of Thursday's USDA report in which the trade is expecting US ending stocks to come in around the 270 million bushel mark, some 5 million down on last month. Brazil's soybean crop is being estimated around the 71 MMT level by most, 3 MMT below the USDA's January number and the Argentine crop at around 48 MMT (50.5 MMT last month).Corn: Mar 12 Corn closed at USD6.42 1/4, down 2 cents; Dec 12 Corn closed at USD5.75 1/4, down 6 cents. New crop lost ground on old crop on talk that US farmers will plant a modern day record corn area this spring. The USDA is seen cutting US corn carryout by around 50 million bushels on Thursday from last month's 846 million. Reductions in corn production in South America are also highly likely with the trade looking at Argentine output of around 22.5 MMT (from 26.0 MMT in January) and a Brazilian crop of around 59.5 MMT (from 61 MMT last month).
Wheat: Mar 12 CBOT Wheat closed at USD6.62 1/4, down 6 1/4 cents; Mar 12 KCBT Wheat closed at USD7.12, down 7 cents; Mar 12 MGEX Wheat closed at USD8.38 1/2, down 2 1/2 cents. Wheat takes a back seat on Thursday, with only minor changes expected for it from the USDA. Funds have cut the size of their short in Chicago wheat in recent weeks. European temperatures are seen moderating, but premature talk of winterkill still exists. Tunisia and Algeria are in the market for wheat.
