BEIJING, May 9 (Reuters) - Chicago corn and soybeans gained on Thursday, as frosts in Russia's key grain-growing regions damaged crops and Argentina's corn crop estimates were lowered due to leafhopper plague.
Wheat also rose, following a two-session decline.
FUNDAMENTALS
* The most-active wheat contract on the Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT) was up 0.24% to $6.35-1/4 a bushel by 0149 GMT, after two sessions of declines.
* Corn gained 0.22% to $4.59-3/4 a bushel, while soybeans gained 0.39% to $12.32-1/4 a bushel.
* Argentina's Rosario grains exchange on Wednesday said the leafhopper plague has ruined around 20% of the corn crop this season, while cutting its harvest estimate for 2023/24 to 47.5 million metric tons from 50 million tons.
* The exchange also held its estimate for the current soybean harvest at 50.0 million tons, though it cautioned harvesting has been delayed by rains and high humidity.
* Brazilian farmers in southern Brazil have criticized plans announced by the government to import up to 1 million metric tons of rice after floods hit Rio Grande do Sul, the country's largest producing state.
* Brazil will remain a competitive corn supplier in global markets thanks to yet another year of abundant production but will not maintain its position as the world's largest exporter, Paulo Sousa, chief executive of grain trader Cargill in the country, said on Wednesday.
* Three of Russia's key grain-growing areas declared a state of emergency on Wednesday, citing May frosts that have caused severe damage to crops and will reduce this year's harvest.
* China has approved the safety of gene-edited wheat for the first time as Beijing cautiously moves forward with commercial growing of genetically modified food crops.
* Ukraine food wheat prices will rise in the new 2024/25 July-June season due to a smaller exportable surplus caused by a fall in both harvest and carryover stocks, a major local producers' union said on Wednesday.
* Traders are anticipate the U.S. Department of Agriculture's May supply and demand and crop production reports due Friday to show adequate supply.
MARKET NEWS
* Global equity markets mostly faltered on Wednesday as investors await fresh inflation data to better assess the likelihood of Federal Reserve interest rate cuts, while the dollar edged higher on expectations of U.S. economic out-performance.
DATA/EVENTS (GMT)
1100 UK BOE Bank Rate April
1230 US Initial Jobless Claim Weekly
-- China Exports YY, Imports YY, Trade Balance $ April (Reporting by Mei Mei Chu; Editing by Varun H K)
