May 15, 2008
Thursday: China soybean futures settle down on profit-taking; oils down
Soybean futures traded on China's Dalian Commodity Exchange settled lower Thursday as traders took profit on gains posted over the previous nine consecutive sessions.
The benchmark January 2009 soybean contract settled RMB41 lower at RMB4,464 a metric tonne, or down 0.91%, after trading between RMB4,428-4,498/tonne.
The cumulative rise in soybean contracts was too big, as expectations of higher oilseeds output this year pressured the market, said Shao Yuanhui, an analyst at Bohai Futures.
The government's efforts to encourage planting of oilseeds this year will likely result in higher output.
China's soybean output this year is likely to rise 22.22% on year to 16.5 million tonnes, while rapeseed output may increase 10.8% to 11.5 million tonnes, according to a recent report by think tank China National Grain and Oils Information Center.
Palm oil futures and soyoil futures settled lower due to weak cash demand and the fall of Chicago Board of Trade soyoil contracts overnight.
Corn futures settled mostly lower, and soymeal futures were mostly little changed.
Traders said the earthquake Monday in Sichuan province, China's biggest hog producing region, may result in reduced corn demand as the hog population was hit by quake, and many feedmeal processing plants have suspended production.
But it's too early to tell the exact impact on the demand for corn and soymeal as many local feedmeal plants in the quake area are not accessible, said an analyst at China Feed Industry Association.
Following are Thursday's settlement prices in yuan per metric tonne and volume for all contracts in lots (one lot is equivalent to 10 tonnes):
Contract Settlement Price Change Volume
Soybean Jan 2009 4,464 Dn 41 871,960
Corn Jan 2009 1,944 Dn 14 417,896
Soymeal Sep 2008 3,596 Up 2 369,982
Palm Oil Sep 2008 10,626 Dn 94 17,702
Soyoil Sep 2008 11,326 Dn 222 368,736
