January 5, 2009

Soybean futures traded on China's Dalian Commodity Exchange settled higher Monday, tracking broad gains in global commodities and equities markets.

 

The benchmark May 2009 soybean contract settled up RMB47, or 1.4% higher at RMB3,413 a metric tonne.

 

Rising prices of metals and crude oil helped to push those of agricultural commodities higher, analysts said.

 

Chinese demand and dry weather in major Argentinean soybean producing areas were also supporting prices, and could push benchmark soybean futures on the Chicago Board of Trade above US$10 a bushel, they said.

 

CBOT March soybeans finished 3 cents lower at US$9.77 a bushel on Friday.

 

However, the overall trend is likely to remain downward, so soybeans could fall again after the current rebound, said Dong Shuangwei, an analyst at Capital Futures.

 

Funds have reentered global markets with the opening of the New Year and on hopes that planned stimulus measures in the U.S. will limit the duration and extent of recession and demand destruction, but some equities analysts said it might not be long before economic worries return to damp enthusiasm.

 

Cash soybean prices during the New Year holiday were higher amid active trading. Processing plants increased their purchase volumes while farmers were more eager to sell.

 

Open interest in all soybean contracts rose 26,952 lots to 393,642 lots Monday.

 

Trading volume rose to 959,784 lots from 522,716 lots Wednesday, the last trading session ahead of the New Year holiday.

 

Corn futures, soymeal futures, soyoil futures and palm oil futures all settled higher.

 

Cash soyoil prices were stable during the holiday, and the sales were not as active as usual, Tianqi Futures said in a note.

  

Monday's settlement prices in yuan a metric tonne for benchmark contracts and volume for all contracts in lots (One lot is equivalent to 10 tonnes):

                                                 

Contract       Settlement        Price        Change     Volume

Soybean       May 2009         3,413        Up   47     959,784

Corn            May 2009         1,553        Up   11     233,986

Soymeal       May 2009         2,544        Up   87     583,090