Chicago Grains Drift Lower

20/07/16 -- Soycomplex: Soybeans closed lower under pressure from a firmer US dollar. There were no new weather market developments today, so the old adage "the bulls need feeding everyday" maybe came into play and we drifted lower. Trade ideas for tomorrow's weekly export sales report for beans are 750,000 MT to 1.25 MMT over both crop years. Talk of lower demand from China than the 87 MMT that the USDA has pencilled in for 2016/17 leans bearish. They are due to auction off another 579,300 MT of state owned reserved on Friday. Word is that the Argentine government is baulking at introducing the promised next 5% reduction in the soybean levy, which would upset growers there and maybe lead to some selling reluctance. Aug 16 Soybeans settled at $10.27, down 17 cents; Nov 16 Soybeans settled at $10.09, down 18 3/4 cents; Aug 16 Soybean Meal settled at $352.40, down $7.30; Aug 16 Soybean Oil settled at 30.71, up 5 points.

Corn: The corn market closed lower despite weekly US ethanol production coming in at a new record 1.029 million barrels per day, according to the US Energy Dept. Weekly export sales for corn tomorrow are expected to be in the region of 900,000 MT to 1.25 MMT. The trade seems relaxed about the ongoing Argentine truckers strike possibly disrupting shipping programmes there, at least for now. The trade is fixed on US weather. "Maximum temperatures are expected to climb into the 90s F over the next several days in Midwest corn and soybeans. Kansas and Oklahoma are expecting highs over 100 F. This would not necessarily be newsworthy, except that extreme heat has been absent this summer to date. Showers are predicted in corn and soybeans though coverage may be scattered. Nebraska and Kansas are expecting the heaviest rainfall, more than one inch, while conditions look drier for Iowa, Missouri and southern Minnesota the balance of this week. Corn farms east of the Mississippi Valley are targeted for heavier rainfall, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio and Michigan," said Martell Crop Projections. Sep 16 Corn settled at $3.37 1/2, down 4 1/4 cents; Dec 16 Corn settled at $3.44 1/4, down 4 1/4 cents.

Wheat: The wheat market closed lower. Export sales of US wheat during the week ending July 14 are estimated to be from 300,000 to 600,000 MT in tomorrow's weekly export sales report. The USDA’s attaché in Australia has pegged the wheat crop there to 26 MT (+6.12% from last season). There's some talk of final production being much higher than this once the combines start rolling. The current WASDE estimate is at 25.5 MT. Japan is tendering for 165,048 MT of wheat in it's regular weekly tender. The French wheat crop is looking poor, but elsewhere in Europe things look better. The FSU looks great. The Ukraine Ag Min predicted a grain harvest in excess of 60 MMT for the 4th year in a row. The wheat harvest there is presently 47% done at 11.3 MMT. The Russian harvest is also going well with more than 25 MMT of wheat already in the barn. UkrAgroConsult predicted Russia's share of the global wheat export market to rise to 16% this season from 14.1% last year. Dec 16 CBOT Wheat settled at $4.36, down 6 1/2 cents; Dec 16 KCBT Wheat settled at $4.32 3/4, down 3 3/4 cents; Dec 16 MGEX Wheat settled at $5.01, down 3 cents.