CBOT January soy deliveries seen to be modest

Traders expect to see modest deliveries against the Chicago Board of Trade January soy futures contract on first notice day on Thursday (Dec 31).

First notice day is the first day that notices of intention to deliver actual commodities against futures-market positions can be received. Traders estimated soy deliveries would be about 100 to 300 contracts, while several analysts pegged deliveries higher at 500 to 1,000 contracts.

As of Tuesday (Dec 29), 220 soy contracts were registered for delivery in CBOT-approved warehouses, according to a CME Group registrar's report. Stocks of deliverable grade soy in CBOT-approved warehouses totalled 3.202 million bushels as of Christmas Day, according to the exchange.

US soy supplies have tightened since production problems in South America shifted demand, particularly from China, to the US. China continues to be a large buyer, which is supportive to CBOT soy.