U.S.Midwest Cash Grain - Corn, soy weak amid lack of fresh demand: CHICAGO, Jan 4 (Reuters) - Spot basis bids for soybeans and corn were lower in the U.S. Midwest on Wednesday amid little demand for grain and farmer selling on Tuesday, dealers said. Farmer selling dried up on Wednesday, except for some scattered sales of new-crop soybeans and some old-crop corn. Farmers were reluctant to lock in prices on new-crop corn. "It's a little too cheap and they don't know where their input costs are," said an Ohio dealer. Fertilizer prices are expected to increase and the price of diesel fuel is already higher than last year. Corn bids dropped 1 to 3 cents per bushel with both processors and exporters having adequate supplies. Soybean bids fell as much as 2 cents, pressured by weak export demand. Soybean export sales for the marketing year starting Sept. 1 were down more than 25 percent compared with the same period last year, said the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Corn export sales were down 6 percent, according to USDA data. Barge freight was mostly unchanged from Tuesday in an untraded market, said a barge operator. At the Chicago Board of Trade, March soybeans rose 3-3/4 cents to close at $6.32-1/4 per bushel in choppy, thin trade. March corn fell 1-3/4 cent to close at $2.18-1/4 per bushel on a profit-taking setback after Tuesday's rally. March soft red winter wheat closed up 1/4 cent at $3.46-1/4 per bushel on late technical strength. END
CBOT soy ends up, wheat firm; corn mostly down- CHICAGO, Jan 4 (Reuters)?: WHEAT - March up 1/4 cent at $3.46-1/4 per bushel, deferred months up 1/4 to 1-1/2 cents. Turned up late on technical strength with FIMAT Futures buying 1,500 March and Citigroup bought 1,100 March. Options-related buying also buoyed wheat near the close, traders said. Wheat was lower most of the day on a profit-taking setback after Tuesday's fund-driven climb. Some added pressure from concerns that the recent rally could hurt export sales of U.S. wheat. Fundamentals provided little new direction Wednesday. * Fund buying at 4,000 to 5,000 lots. * Exports were quiet overnight. * The nine-day relative strength index for March stood at 71 ahead of the open. Traders view an RSI of 70 or higher as one sign of an overbought market. * Meteorlogix weather said there were no signs of cold weather in the U.S. winter wheat region that could harm the crop. But there were few signs of much rainfall in the forecast for the Plains hard red winter belt or the Midwest soft red winter growing area. * Cash basis bids for soft red winter wheat were steady to weak in the Midwest early on Wednesday.
CORN - March down 1-3/4 cents at $2.18-1/4 per bushel, deferreds down 1-1/2 to up 1/4. Profit-taking setback after Tuesday's strong fund-driven close. Exports were quiet overnight. Weak cash markets weigh, with an increase in farmer selling noted during Tuesday's rally. * Funds sold 4,000 contracts. Rand Financial and Calyon Financial noted sellers, traders said. * The nine-day relative strength index for March stood at 71 ahead of the open. Traders view an RSI of 70 or higher as indicating an overbought market. * Export activity overnight included news Taiwan Sugar canceled a tender set for Thursday to buy U.S. corn and soy. And Taiwan's MFIG set a tender for Friday to buy between 56,000 and 60,000 tonnes of U.S. corn. * Private forecaster Meteorlogix said hot and dry weather in Argentina would be stressing the corn and soybean crops. There is a chance for rain late next week, Meteorlogix said. Crop weather currently is favorable in Brazil but there is some concern about outlooks for hotter and drier weather for the next week or more, Meteorlogix said. * Cash basis bids for corn in the Midwest were weak on Wednesday and farmer selling slowed after the increased sales on Tuesday.
SOYBEANS - January up 3-1/2 cents at $6.21 per bushel, March up 3-3/4 at $6.32-1/4. Turning higher in choppy, thin trade, brokers said. Concerns about hot and dry weather in Argentina's soy areas and outlooks for drier weather in Brazil help underpin values. * Fund buying totaled 1,000 to 1,500 lots. DT Trading bought 600 March while Rand net sold 300 March and ADM Investor Services sold 200 March, traders said. * The nine-day relative strength index for March stood at 67 ahead of the open. Traders view an RSI of 70 or higher as a sign of an overbought market. * Private forecaster Meteorlogix said hot and dry weather in Argentina would be stressing the corn and soybean crops. There is a chance for rain late next week, Meteorlogix said. Crop weather currently is favorable in Brazil but there is some concern about outlooks for hotter and drier weather for the next week or more, Meteorlogix said. * Exports continue to lag USDA projections. But there was talk on Tuesday that China bought two or three cargoes of U.S. soybeans early this week, traders said. * Deliveries on the January contract totaled 416 lots. An R.J. O'Brien customer issued 173 lots and a J.P. Morgan customer posted 165. Key stoppers included an Infinium customer taking 186 and a customer of Banc of America stopped 100 lots. * Registrations with the CBOT increased to 1,908 lots from the previous 1,743. * Cash basis bids for soy in the Midwest were weak on Wednesday and farmer selling slowed after the increased sales on Tuesday.
SOYMEAL - January down $3.10 per ton at $195.10 per ton, March down 80 cents at $196.90. Bunge bear-spread 800 March/January which led to talk of possible commercial deliveries on the January contract on Thursday. * Funds sold 1,500 lots. * No deliveries were posted against the January contract on Wednesday. * Registrations with the CBOT were unchanged at 240 lots.
SOYOIL - January up 0.26 at 23.22 cents per lb, March up 0.36 at 23.60 cents. Turned higher on technical buying, with March climbing back above its 200-day moving average. Bullish tone in energy markets supportive. Strength in January limited by heavy commercial deliveries. * Funds bought 4,000 lots. * There were 1,266 January deliveries. The ADM house account issued 1,049 lots after being a big stopper on Tuesday. An Iowa Grain customer on Wednesday stopped 861 lots and a Henning customer stopped 359 lots. * CBOT registrations were unchanged at 5,211 lots. * Malaysian palm oil futures closed firm overnight. ** Dollar slides on U.S. rate outlook. ** U.S. stocks inch lower, despite strength in tech sector.
