Soybean Premiums Decline as Price Gain Trims Demand; Corn Basis Is Steady

Cash premiums for soybeans shippedto export terminals near New Orleans fell relative to Chicagofutures as buyers retreated after prices rose. Corn premiumswere unchanged.

The spot-basis bid, or premium, for soybeans delivered inJuly shrank to 88 cents to 94 cents a bushel above Augustfutures from 88 cents to 95 cents yesterday, U.S. Department ofAgriculture data show. The corn premium was unchanged at 35cents above September futures. The spot premium for corndeclined yesterday to the lowest level since March 23.

With this year’s soybean harvest a month away in the U.S.South, cash grain dealers are “doing a delicate dance to makesure that they don’t buy a lot of high-priced old crop,” saidCharles Sernatinger, a vice president for ABN Amro Clearing LLCin Chicago. “Export demand for corn is routine.”

Soybean futures for August delivery gained 3.5 cents to$10.1525 a bushel on the Chicago Board of Trade. The price onJuly 16 touched $10.27, the highest level for the contract sinceJan. 8. Futures have risen 9 percent this month.

Corn futures for September delivery rose 5.75 cents, or 1.5percent, to $3.7975 a bushel in Chicago, the first increase thisweek. The contract is up 4.7 percent this month.

Government inspectors examined 6.851 million bushels ofsoybeans for export in the week ended July 15, down 51 percentfrom a year earlier, the USDA said this week in a report. Corninspections fell 4.7 percent.