CHICAGO, Dec 13 (Reuters) - U.S. soybean futures rose on Tuesday, supported by a round of bargain buying after two days of losses as well as signs that export demand remains strong, traders said.
Corn and wheat futures weakened on a round of profit taking after hitting 10-day highs early in the session, with light demand for both commodities weighing on prices.
"The futures seem to be running out of steam," Charlie Sernatinger of Marex Capital said in a note to clients. "Further gains will have to be news driven and I'm not seeing a lot of news.
Soybeans rose after falling about 1.7% during the previous two sessions, with a fresh export sale pushing prices above their overnight highs. Forecasts for more rains in Argentina and Brazil limited gains.
Chicago Board of Trade March soybean futures settled up 19-1/4 cents at $14.80-3/4 a bushel after finding support at its 10-day moving average.
Private exporters reported the sale of 140,000 tonnes of soybeans to unknown destinations in the 2023/24 marketing year, the U.S. Agriculture Department said on Tuesday morning. It was the first so-called "flash sale" in a week.
CBOT March corn futures were down 1/2 cent at $6.53-1/2 a bushel and CBOT March soft red winter wheat futures dropped 4 cents to $7.50-3/4 a bushel.
News that Ukraine's port of Odesa had suspended operations on Sunday after Russian strikes on energy supplies focused attention back on risks to wartime grain shipments. The port resumed activity on Monday.
"Although Odesa is operating again there is still concern the port may not achieve full operations quickly," said Matt Ammermann, StoneX commodity risk manager. (Additional reporting by Michael Hogan in Hamburg and Naveen Thukral in Singapore, editing by David Evans, Marguerita Choy and Sandra Maler)
