Soybean prices on the Chicago Board of Trade edged slightly higher on Monday, as the market caught its breath after last week’s losses that pushed prices to their weakest levels since late October, amid uncertainty over demand from China, the world’s largest importer.
Wheat continued to post additional gains, supported by buying on dips, although abundant global supplies are likely to cap prices. A Singapore-based trader said: “Chinese buying was largely driven by the US-China trade agreement. Chinese demand for imported soybeans remains limited due to ample supplies in the domestic market.”
Uncertainty over when China will fulfill its target of purchasing 12 million metric tons of US soybeans, stipulated under a trade truce between Beijing and Washington, has weighed on the market, particularly as a bumper harvest is expected in Brazil early in 2026. China did not import any US soybean shipments for the third consecutive month in November, as buyers turned to South American supplies amid concerns about potential shortages should the trade war persist.
Following the truce reached in October, China stepped up purchases of US shipments, with traders saying more than 7 million tons have been bought since then.
On Friday morning, exporters sold 134,000 tons of US soybeans to China, according to the US Department of Agriculture’s daily reporting system.
In other grain markets, large wheat crops in Argentina and Australia are adding fresh supplies to the global market. Early outlooks for next year’s crops also appear favorable, with Russia, the world’s largest exporter, forecasting a strong harvest of 90 million tons, according to officials last week.
Ukraine’s economy ministry said on Friday that Ukrainian farmers had threshed about 56.6 million tons of grain from 93.5% of the planted area as of December 18, without providing comparative data.
Regulatory data released on Friday showed that large speculators increased their net short positions in Chicago corn futures during the week ended December 9.
The US Commodity Futures Trading Commission’s weekly Commitments of Traders report also showed that non-commercial traders, a category that includes hedge funds, increased their net short positions in wheat contracts, while reducing their net long positions in soybeans.
Corn
March corn futures rose 0.7% at the close to $4.47 per bushel.
Soybeans
January soybean futures gained 0.3% to $10.53 per bushel.
Wheat
March wheat futures climbed 1.1% to $5.15 per bushel.
