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BEIJING - Chicago Board of Trade soybean futures fell on Tuesday as traders anticipated that China, the biggest importer, would ramp up purchases of cheap, plentiful Brazilian beans, potentially dampening demand for U.S. soy.
Wheat futures also slipped after briefly rising to their highest level in more than seven weeks on Monday, as concerns that cold weather could damage U.S. and Russian crops eased.
Corn was flat as ample global supply kept a lid on prices.
The most-active soybean contract on the Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT) had fallen 0.1% to $10.60-1/4 a bushel by 0451 GMT, with CBOT wheat down 0.3% at $5.20-3/4 a bushel and corn unchanged at $4.28-1/4 a bushel.
Soybean prices have risen slightly since the U.S. and China reached an agreement in October for China to resume purchases of U.S. soy, but plentiful supply continues to weigh on the market.
China is now expected to increase soybean imports from Brazil in the first half of 2026, driven by a bumper Brazilian harvest and competitive prices, traders told Reuters.
China's locking in of Brazilian cargoes could hit demand for U.S. soybeans when the North American export season begins in September.
Brazil, the world's largest soybean producer and exporter, is expected to produce a record 181 million metric tons of soybeans, agribusiness consultancy AgRural said on Monday, raising its forecast from 180.4 million tons.
Traders are closely monitoring extreme weather in Russia and the U.S., which endured a severe winter storm over the weekend.
"The market has reversed some of the gains over the past few days as fears of winter kill in Russia and the U.S. wheat belt diminished as adequate snow cover has protected the crop," said Andrew Whitelaw, founder of agri consultants Episode 3.
"We expect the market to trade relatively flat, to lower on wheat in the coming days" he said.
Also in Russia, wheat export prices rose for the second week in a row due to persistent bad weather at Black Sea ports, which analysts say will continue to hold back shipments.
