CHICAGO, May 25 (Xinhua) -- Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT) agricultural futures closed mixed on Thursday, with corn rising and wheat and soybean falling.
The most active corn contract for July delivery rose 3.5 cents, or 0.6 percent, to settle at 5.9075 U.S. dollars per bushel. July wheat fell 2 cents, or 0.33 percent, to settle at 6.0425 dollars per bushel. July soybean lost 0.5 cents, or 0.04 percent, to settle at 13.24 dollars per bushel.
Technical selling has driven soybeans lower. Market focus is now on old crop demand and U.S. growing season weather. Chicago-based research company AgResource continues to advise patience with new crop sales.
U.S. export sales for the week ending May 18 were net cancellation of 1.66 million bushels of old crop wheat, while new crop sales totaled 9 million bushels. Corn sales were net cancellations of 2.96 million bushels of old crop and new crop sales of 2.1 million bushels. Soybean sales totaled 42 million bushels of old crop and just 40,000 bushels of new crop.
For respective crop years to date, the United States has sold 692 million bushels of old crop wheat, down 3 percent year on year, and 81 million bushels of new crop, down 27 percent. Corn sales are at 1,495 million bushels, down 36 percent; and soybean sales are at 1,868 million bushels, down 14 percent.
The Buenos Aires Grain Exchange on Wednesday held its estimate for Argentine soybean production unchanged from last week at 21 million metric tons, and for Argentine corn crop at 36 million metric tons.
A drier outlook is maintained for the Central and Eastern Midwest over the next 10 days.
