March 31, 2006

 

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

 

 

Soybean futures on China's Dalian Commodity Exchange settled mostly higher Friday on overnight gains in Chicago Board of Trade soybean futures, while nearby commodities futures lent some support as well, analysts said.

 

The benchmark September 2006 soybean contract rose RMB15 to settle at RMB2,701 a metric tonne, after trading between RMB2,697/tonne and RMB2,708/tonne.

 

Open interest for all soybean contracts fell by 2,538 to 277,728 lots.

 

One lot equals 10 tonnes.

 

No. 2 soybean contracts, which are encouraged to be delivered with soybeans harvested from genetically modified crops, settled mixed.

 

The benchmark September contract settled RMB8 higher at RMB2,600/tonne.

 

"It's still hard to predict the USDA report's impact on the CBOT Friday," said Zeng Xuezhou, an analyst with Beite Futures Co. "We're waiting for the CBOT."

 

"However, spillover from strong precious metals, and local copper futures which hit record highs, helped to lift soy futures," said Zeng.

 

Analysts said Friday's CBOT price movements on USDA's report will largely determine the trend of local market in the short-run.

 

Soymeal futures settled higher, along with soybeans.

 

The benchmark September 2006 contract rose RMB17 to settle at RMB2,311/tonne, after trading between RMB2,306/tonne and RMB2,318/tonne.

 

Soyoil futures settled mixed. The benchmark September 2006 contract settled RMB17 higher at RMB5,165/tonne.

 

Corn futures settled higher.

 

The most widely held September 2006 contract settled RMB7 higher at RMB1,406/tonne.