By Kirk Maltais


--Wheat for September delivery fell 2% to $4.07 1/2 a bushel on the Chicago Board of Trade on Wednesday, with traders preparing for Friday's WASDE report from the USDA to show higher output of wheat out of U.S. farms.

--Soybeans for November delivery fell 1.3% to $10.66 1/4 a bushel.

--Corn for December delivery fell 0.2% to $4.07 1/2 a bushel.


HIGHLIGHTS


Lying in Wait: Grain traders are preparing for the upcoming USDA report to show that weather has been generally supportive for crops in recent weeks - even with the remnants of Hurricane Beryl passing through and flooding seen in northern growing states last month. "Everything in the market today is in anticipation of Friday's WASDE," said Karl Setzer of Consus Ag Consulting. Traders are expecting the report to add further pressure to futures, but Setzer warns that with the large short positions fund traders hold, "even a neutral report can receive a bullish reaction."

Future Shock: Traders and analysts are concerned about a potential second Trump administration escalating trade tensions between the U.S. and China - much like what happened with the trade war in 2018. "Soybeans fall to new lows on technical selling and the fear of new tariffs for China in 2025 via the Republican political agenda," AgResource said in a note. New tariffs by the U.S. against China, as promised by Trump on the campaign trail, is seen as provoking retaliation from China - who is one of the biggest buyers of U.S. agriculture.


INSIGHT


Pushing the Boundaries: CBOT corn continues to trend lower as analysts keep a close eye on longer-term weather forecasts - and the increasing possibility of a record-breaking U.S. corn crop. "We realize farmers don't like the price, but they are really not going to like the potential price drop that is right around the corner if there are no weather issues by early August," said Tomm Pfitzenmaier of Summit Commodity Brokerage in a note.

Chinese Buying: The news wasn't all bad for U.S. grains today - with the USDA reporting that 132,000 metric tons of soybeans were sold to China for delivery in the 2024/25 marketing year. The sale being for the current market year was encouraging to traders, but the news on its own did little to push futures back up. "While nice, finally a new crop sale, this is a drop in the bucket compared to what their needs are," says Naomi Blohm of Total Farm Marketing in a note.


AHEAD


--Conagra Brands Inc. will release its fourth-quarter earnings report before the market opens Thursday.

--The USDA will release its weekly export sales report at 8:30 a.m. ET Thursday.

--Brazilian crop agency Conab will release the results of its 10th Grain Harvest Survey between 10 a.m to 11 a.m ET Thursday.


Write to kirk.maltais; kirk.maltais


(END) Dow Jones Newswires

07-10-24 1532ET