September 20, 2007

Thursday: China soybean futures settle lower on profit-taking

Soybean futures traded on the Dalian Commodity Exchange settled lower Thursday for the second consecutive day on profit-taking.

"The market is going in for correction after moving on an uptrend over the past three months," said a trader in Beijing.

He added that China's soybean supply, too, is quite comfortable at the present time.

Further bearish news emerged that the Chinese government is likely to announce a three-month reduction of soybean import duty to 1% from 3% to encourage imports, traders and industry officials said, which will make imported soybeans cheaper.

Benchmark May 2008 soybean contract settled RMB31 lower at RMB4,078/tonne.

Soymeal futures settled mixed, with the benchmark May 2008 contract falling RMB18 to RMB3,202/tonne. Soyoil futures settled mostly lower, with the most active May 2008 contract falling by RMB46 to RMB8,310/tonne.

Corn futures, too, settled lower, with the benchmark May 2008 contract retreating RMB5 to RMB1,656/tonne, on news that the Chinese government is planning to impose curbs on new corn-processing plants and cutting corn exports.