Nogger's Blog

05/04/12 -- The overnight grains see beans 3-4 cents higher, wheat a cent higher to 2 cents lower and corn around 1-2 cents easier. Crude is slightly higher and so too is the dollar.

The USDA reveals weekly export sales of 408,300 MT for old crop wheat and 103,400 MT for new crop, compared to expectations of 300-500 TMT. In amongst the old crop sales was 38,000 MT for China. Exports of 404,700 MT were in line with recent weekly totals.

Soybean sales of 406,900 MT of old crop and 706,000 MT for delivery in the 2012/13 beat analysts expectations of 600-850 TMT. Once again China took the lion's share accounting for 257,200 MT of old crop and 525,500 MT of the new crop.

Corn sales of 937,600 MT old crop and 185,100 MT new crop also beat trade guesses of combined sales of 400-700 TMT. What will catch trader's eyes is China taking 394,000 MT of the old crop.

China present in the weekly export sales for all three of the main protagonists has to be something of a first for quite some time. That may support the market tonight, particularly old crop corn.

As we head into a long weekend nearby beans are up 19 3/4 cents on the week so far, with corn down 11 3/4 cents and wheat falling 20 1/4 cents, including the overnights.

South American soybean production estimates keep falling.

Midwest weather forecasts seem mostly favourable, although there's a light frost on the cards for some places little damage is expected with only 3% of the corn crop in the ground as of last Sunday.

The results of today's Egyptian wheat tender will be out mid-session.

Early calls for this afternoon's CBOT session: soybeans up 3-4 cents; wheat up 1-2 cents; old crop corn up 2-3 cents, new crop corn down 1-3 cents.