Soybeans ease after 16-month high as traders await China moves - CBOT
Wheat extends gains on Chinese interest; corn edges lower
4 November 2025
1 minute read
By: Chicago soybeans fell on Tuesday, retreating from a 16-month high hit in the previous session, as traders awaited further Chinese purchases of US cargoes following last week’s talks and a thaw in trade relations between the two countries, reported Reuters.
Wheat gained more ground, hitting its highest in more than three months, while corn slipped.
The most-active soybean contract on the Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT) fell 0.2% to $11.32-1/4 a bushel as of 0112 GMT, after climbing to its highest level since June 2024 on Monday. Wheat rose 0.4% to $5.45-1/2 a bushel, its strongest since July, while corn lost 0.3% to $4.33 a bushel.
Hopes of renewed Chinese demand have supported US agricultural markets in recent sessions, though traders are still waiting for China to follow through on official announcements of large soybean purchases.
China largely avoided US soybeans during the trade dispute, sourcing instead from South America. On Monday, traders said Chinese importers have increased purchases of Brazilian cargoes as South American prices eased amid expectations of a US–China trade deal.
Brazil’s soybean planting for the 2025-26 season reached 47% of the expected area as of last Thursday, up from 36% a week earlier but behind the 54% pace seen last year due to irregular rainfall, according to agribusiness consultancy AgRural.
US soy and corn harvests are nearly complete, with the soybean harvest at 91% and corn at 83% finished as of Sunday, a Reuters poll showed. Farmers are bringing in what is projected to be the largest US corn crop in history alongside a bumper soybean crop.
The wheat market was buoyed by reports of Chinese interest in buying US wheat.
Meanwhile, the US government shutdown has delayed official export sales data, leaving traders without the usual daily flash sales announcements from the US Department of Agriculture.
Most major stock indexes rose on Monday after news that Amazon.com will supply cloud-computing services to OpenAI, while the US dollar climbed to a three-month high against the euro on reduced expectations for steep US interest-rate cuts.
