Grain, Soybean Futures Fall on Crude-Oil Selling

Grain and soybean futures turned lower as weather forecasts improved and continued crude-oil selling pressured prices.

Crude-oil futures fell to $42.05 a barrel on Wednesday afternoon, the lowest point in over a year.

That has limited buying interest in contracts for agricultural commodities such as corn and soybeans, which can be used to make competing biofuels.

Recent hot and dry weather in the Midwest had also encouraged traders to factor a risk premium into corn and soybean futures. Wetter short-term forecasts now have traders scaling back some of those positions on thoughts rain will add valuable moisture to the crop. That increases the likelihood of good yields, analysts say, potentially adding to already large domestic supplies.

Soybean futures for July delivery fell 1% to $9.18 3/4 a bushel at the Chicago Board of Trade, while July corn contracts dropped 0.3% to $3.68 3/4.

Wheat prices were lower as traders took profits on recent rallies. The Northern Plains-grown spring wheat crop has been hardest hit by bad weather, with drought-like conditions causing irreversible damage to some of the crop. That has supported rallies across contracts for different wheat varieties, though recent rainfall prompted traders to lock in gains.

CBOT July wheat futures fell 1.7% to $4.64 1/2 a bushel.

Write to Benjamin Parkin at benjamin.parkin@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

June 21, 2017 17:24 ET (21:24 GMT)