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CBOT soyabeans surge to 6-month highs on US weather

CHICAGO: Soyabean futures at the Chicago Board of Trade ended sharply higher on Thursday amid forecasts for dry near-term weather in the US Midwest and on commodity fund buying, traders said.

The gains also came amid position squaring on the eve of quarterly grain stocks and prospective plantings reports to be issued by the US Department of Agriculture.

CBOT soyabeans settled 4-1/2 to 9 cents per bushel higher, with May up 8-1/2 at $5.37-1/2, its best close since touching $5.39-3/4 on Sept. 7. November, the first major new-crop marketing month was up 7-1/2 at $5.59-1/2.

Salomon Smith Barney, in its weather report, said reduced the amount of rainfall and coverage in the Midwest on Sunday and Monday from a previous forecast.

"The next rain opportunity after the Sunday/Monday wave will be late next week -- Friday/Saturday. It is a bit early to start discussing specific amounts and coverage with this system but at this time it does not look like it has what it takes to produce substantial rains over the majority of the Belt," the forecast said.

Many parts of the Midwest corn and soyabean growing region have been depleted of soil moisture following an unseasonably warm and dry winter.

Weather Services Corp. meteorologist Joel Burgio said the Midwest corn and soyabean growing region will be mostly dry over the next 48 hours, and turn warmer from the west to east on Thursday and Friday, remaining warm Saturday.

He said scattered showers should develop in the western Corn Belt later Sunday and end Monday. He forecast showers of 1/10 inch to 1/2 inch, with locally heavier rainfall.

The eastern part of the region will continue to be dry on Sunday. "We do expect scattered showers and thunderstorms of 1/4 to 3/4 inch on Monday ending early Tuesday," he said.

Burgio said top soil moisture in a good part of the Midwest was short to adequate while the subsoil was very dry.

Traders said there was also position squaring and short-covering ahead of Friday's USDA reports.

An average of analysts' estimates put 2000 US soyabean seedings at 74.43 million acres, above the 73.78 million acres seeded in the 1999 season.

Analysts pegged the US stockpile of soyabeans as of March 1 at 1.42 billion bushels, below the 1.46 billion bushels on hand on March 1, 1999.

Meanwhile, the USDA's weekly export sales report showed net export sales of US soyabeans in the week ended March 23 at 270,000 tonnes, below a range of estimates for 300,000 to 500,000 tonnes.

The tally was 32 percent below a week ago and down 42 percent from the four week average, according to the USDA.

Funds bought 2,000 contracts. Goldenberg Hehmeyer bought 300 July, 600 November, 600 May contracts, Prudential Securities bought 300 May, Refco Inc. bought 200 July, 200 May, FIMAT Futures bought 500 May, 100 September, ADM Investor Services bought 600 May, 100 July, sold 100 May, 100 September.

Soyabean futures volume was estimated by the CBOT at 38,000 lots, compared to the 34,681 traded Wednesday.

Soyabean options volume was estimated at 13,000 lots.-Reuters