Soybeans Advance on Speculation Demand May Pare U.S. Inventory

By Luzi Ann Javier

Dec. 3 (Bloomberg) -- Soybeans climbed on speculation the U.S. Department of Agriculture may raise its estimates on the nation’s exports of the beans and demand from crushers, lowering stockpiles at the end of the marketing year.

Soybean stockpiles may be 240 million metric tons by Aug. 31, Allendale Inc., a farm marketing adviser and brokerage said in an e-mail yesterday. That’s compares with the 270 million tons inventory forecast by the USDA on Nov. 10.

Expectations of higher demand may be pushing prices higher in early electronic trading, said Toshiro Horiguchi, assistant general manager at Agrex Asia Pte., in a phone interview today. Prices may still extend recent declines because the increase in demand has already been priced in and “we have good supply.”

January-delivery soybeans climbed as much as 1 percent to $10.44 a bushel in after-hours trading on the Chicago Board of Trade, after closing 2.4 percent lower yesterday. The contract traded at $10.4325a bushel at 1:46 p.m. Singapore time.

“Both crush and exports are running better than expected,” Joe Victor, vice president at Allendale said in an e-mail yesterday. “We look for USDA to revise those higher.” The USDA is scheduled to report its latest estimate on U.S. soybean supply and demand estimates on Dec. 10.

March-delivery corn gained as much as 0.6 percent to $4.09 a bushel in Chicago, after ending 1.9 percent lower yesterday. It traded at $4.0775 a bushel at 1:46 p.m. Singapore time.

Wheat for March delivery added as much as 0.9 percent to $5.81 a bushel, after losing 1.4 percent at close yesterday. It last traded at $5.78, up 0.4 percent.

To contact the reporter on this story: Luzi Ann Javier in Singapore at ljavier@bloomberg.net