Soybeans up for 3rd day on U.S. weather concerns, wheat eases – RTRS

• Soybeans gain more ground on f’casts of dry U.S. summer
• Wheat eases after 5-day rally on Europe rains, corn dips

By Naveen Thukral

SINGAPORE, June 8 (Reuters) – Chicago soybean futures rose for a third consecutive session on Wednesday, with prices underpinned by forecasts of hot and dry weather during the U.S. summer growing season.

Wheat eased as the market took a breather after a five-session rally which was triggered as unseasonal rains in Europe sparked concerns over potential crop losses.

The Chicago Board of Trade most-active soybean contract  Sv1 had risen 0.4 percent to $11.46-1/4 a bushel by 0237 GMT, having closed 0.3-percent higher on Tuesday.

Wheat  Wv1 slid 0.3 percent to $5.07-1/4 a bushel after gaining almost 10 percent in the last five sessions, while corn  Cv1 fell 0.2 percent to $4.27 a bushel.

“Investors and traders are worried about dryness in U.S. soybeans’ establishment and development stages,” said Tobin Gorey, director of agricultural strategy at Commonwealth Bank of Australia.

Midwest Market Solutions said weather forecasts for July for key U.S. soybean growing regions call for hotter and direr conditions than normal, stirring fears that a La Nina weather pattern could be emerging.

Soybeans have climbed about 34 percent since the beginning of March as unseasonal rains caused widespread damage to the crop in Argentina, the world’s third largest supplier.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s announcement that private exporters sold 180,000 tonnes of soybeans to China for 2016/17 delivery supported prices. That marked the second day in a row that the government had announced a sale of U.S. supplies.

Torrential rain in France could cut wheat yields in the European Union’s biggest grower although better conditions in countries including Germany are keeping western Europe on course for another large harvest this year.

U.S. winter wheat ratings fell by one point to 62 percent, but the relatively good score and drier weather for the U.S. harvest under way have underlined ample U.S. supplies.

Commodity funds were net buyers of CBOT soybean, corn and wheat futures contracts on Tuesday.

Traders estimated that funds activity in corn ranged from net even to buyers of 7,000 contracts. In soybeans, they were estimated to be net buyers of 3,000 to 5,000 contracts. For wheat, estimates ranged from net purchases of 5,000 to 7,000 contracts.