EU grains volatile after CBOT soy, corn fall back

Tag: Soybean Soy

European wheat futures were expected to be volatile on Thursday after soybeans and corn trimmed strong overnight gains, traders said. Chicago Board of Trade soybean futures retreated from a record high on profit-taking as caution over a rally in crude oil weighed on the feedstock used to make biofuel. Ahead of a long holiday weekend in the United States, investors were also holding back on aggressive buying in grains, traders said.

Traders in Europe said the long U.S. weekend added to volatility as some investors could be tempted to protect their positions due to forecasts pointing to hot weather for crops that have entered a critical growth stage.
Markets will be closed on Friday for the U.S. July 4 Independence Day holiday and reopen with Asian electronic trade on Monday.

Front-month July soybean futures rose as high as $16.51 per bushel in early Asian trade, marking a record for the market for the fourth day in a row. The contract later reversed gains. As of 1030 GMT, it was down 8-3/4 cents from the Chicago close at $16.37, after falling as low as $16.21-3/4 earlier. U.S. crude hit fresh records above $145.8 a barrel on Thursday on a weaker dollar and as a bigger than expected fall in U.S. crude stocks raised supply concerns. Soybeans and corn are used to produce biofuels for use in automobiles.