SINGAPORE: Corn edged higher on Tuesday, with bargain-buying supporting prices, although the market was trading not far from previous session's four-year low on expectations of record U.S. production and selling by farmers.

Soybeans and wheat inched higher in early Asian trade.

 

FUNDAMENTALS

* The most-active corn contract on the Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT) was up 0.3% at 3.87-3/4 a bushel, as of 0042 GMT, having dropped to its lowest since 2020 at $3.85 a bushel on Monday.

* Wheat added 0.1% to $5.25-1/4 a bushel and soybeans inched 0.1% higher to $9.81-1/2 a bushel.

* A flurry of U.S. farmer selling has continued this week, adding downward momentum to corn futures.

* A closely followed crop tour run by advisory service ProFarmer projected record crop yields in major producer states Illinois and Iowa, reinforcing a global oversupply picture.

* ProFarmer also reported that the U.S. soybean harvest will be even bigger than the government's record forecast.

* However, a heat wave and lack of rainfall in swathes of the U.S. Midwest may damage the soybean crop during its key development stage and has left industry players uncertain about whether the projected record yields will be realized, analysts said.

* In Europe, crop monitoring service MARS on Monday cut most of its average grain yield forecasts for the region this year, with another sharp reduction for maize as hot weather continues to take a toll on crops in southeast Europe.

* Brazilian farmers have started sowing their 2024/25 first corn crop, agribusiness consultancy AgRural said on Monday, estimating work in the fields to have reached 4.2% of the projected area in the key center-south region by late last week.

* Wheat futures are facing headwinds from cheap Black Sea supplies.

* Recent rains in Argentina's agricultural heartland were not enough to lift the wheat crop, which has withered on lack of precipitation, the Rosario Grains Exchange said on Monday.

* Commodity funds were net sellers of CBOT corn, wheat and soymeal futures contracts, and were net buyers of soyoil and soybean futures contracts on Monday, traders said.

 

MARKET NEWS

* World equity markets edged lower on Monday as investors digested the likelihood of U.S. interest rates being lowered soon, even as oil prices jumped amid increased tensions in the Middle East.

 

DATA/EVENTS (GMT) 0600 Germany GDP Detailed QQ SA Q2 0600 Germany GDP Detailed YY NSA Q2 1400 US Consumer Confidence August (Reporting by Naveen Thukral; Editing by Sherry Jacob-Phillips)