eCBOT Close, Early Call

The overnight grains closed mixed withe beans ending around 1-2 cents lower, and corn and wheat a cent or two higher.

Crude oil is down a tad, and the dollar barely changed in a quiet start to the week.

The market still seems nervous over last week's tough talking from Obama re tightening regulations on speculation in commodities.

Informa and Allendale are both forecasting increased US corn and soybean area for spring 2010.

Almost everybody is now talking a Brazilian soybean crop of 65 MMT, easily a record. One report I read last week suggested that Bunge are privately pegging it at 66 MMT. Argentine farmers are finally set to get an overdue break with a record 52 MMT bean crop there too.

Whilst recent rains may have slowed the Mato Grosso harvest a little they is surely only delaying the inevitable, although China was once again another featured big buyer of US beans last week. They've been accounting for 75% of all the weekly soybean sales for month now, when they finally switch their attention to South America it's going to leave one hell of a void.

Early calls for this afternoon's CBOT session: corn and wheat called 1 to 2 higher; soybeans called steady to 2 lower.