January 23, 2006

 

Monday: China soybean futures settle higher on CBOT; corn up

 

 

Soybean futures traded on China's Dalian Commodity Exchange settled higher Monday following a rebound in U.S. soybean futures Friday, traders said.

 

The benchmark May 2006 contract rose RMB26 a metric tonne to settle at RMB2,679/tonne, after trading between RMB2,665/tonne and RMB2,690/tonne.

 

The trading volume rose to 174,646 lots from 118,088 lots Friday, but traders said the volume was smaller than that traded throughout December.

 

One lot is equivalent to 10 tonnes.

 

The rebound in Chicago Board of Trade soybean futures Friday after previous losses sparked short-covering in the benchmark contract on the Dalian exchange and speculative long buying in some forward-month contracts.

 

Traders expect local investors to remain cautious ahead of the Lunar New Year holidays next week, as fewer investors may be interested in trading as the weeklong holiday approaches.

 

The No. 2 soybean contracts, which can be delivered with soybeans harvested from genetically modified crops, settled mixed, with the benchmark contract rising on speculative long buying.

 

The benchmark September 2005 contract rose RMB9/tonne to settle at RMB2,579/tonne, after trading between RMB2,571/tonne and RMB2,589/tonne.

 

Soyoil futures settled mostly higher, but off intraday highs as contracts were seen overbought after prices rose sharply late last week.

 

The benchmark September 2006 soyoil contract settled RMB4/tonne higher at RMB5,112/tonne, after trading between RMB5,084/tonne and RMB5,142/tonne.

 

Soymeal futures on the Dalian exchange, meanwhile, settled mostly higher following gains in soybean futures.

 

The benchmark September 2006 soymeal contract added RMB29/tonne to settle at RMB2,354/tonne, after trading between RMB2,338/tonne and RMB2,367/tonne.

 

Corn futures settled mostly higher, boosted by positive sentiment.

 

The most heavily traded September 2006 contract rose RMB5/tonne to settle at RMB1,384/tonne, after trading between RMB1,380/tonne and RMB1,388/tonne.

 

China's futures trading is off-limits to foreign investors.