The latest export sales of U.S. soybeans have shown a decline, disappointing some traders. According to the Department of Agriculture’s weekly report, sales for the 2023/24 marketing year amounted to 672,200 metric tons for the week ending September 21. However, this figure was influenced by the cancellation of 334,800 tons of soybeans previously sold to unknown destinations, which is typically interpreted as referring to China.
These sales figures for soybeans fell on the lower end of expectations by analysts surveyed by The Wall Street Journal. Predictions ranged from 550,000 tons to 1.2 million tons. Doug Bergman of RCM Alternatives noted that this week’s figures indicated “weaker bean exports than we’d like to see this time of the year.”
Meanwhile, corn sales fared better, falling within the midpoint of analyst ranges, whereas wheat sales exceeded expectations, landing on the higher end. Corn sales reached a total of 841,800 tons for the week, while wheat sales reached 544,500 tons, which represents a 51% increase from the previous four-week average.
In pre-market trading on the CBOT, grain futures are lower. The most-active corn futures are down by 0.3%, soybeans by 0.7%, and wheat by 0.3%.
For additional information on U.S. export sales data, please search “U.S. Export Sales: Weekly Sales Totals” in Dow Jones NewsPlus.