Chicago soybeans rise with China demand in focus

Chicago soybean futures rose on Friday to stay on track for a weekly gain, bolstered by higher oil prices and continued Chinese demand for US supplies, reports Reuters.

Wheat and corn eased after reaching their highest in over a week on Thursday, with modest weekly US export sales and rain forecast for parched US wheat belts curbing prices.

Traders were monitoring investor flows linked to annual changes in the composition of commodity indexes and looking ahead to widely tracked supply and demand data from the US Department of Agriculture on Monday.

Investors were also bracing for US employment figures and a possible Supreme Court decision on President Donald Trump's use of trade tariffs later on Friday.

The most-active soybean contract on the Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT) was up 0.5% at $10.66 a bushel by 1056 GMT.

On Thursday, the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) confirmed that exporters sold 132,000 metric tons of US soybeans to China.

Traders said there was talk of bigger sales as China continues to book US supplies following a bilateral trade truce signed in late October.

"The deficit in US soybean exports that we have seen this year continues to narrow with Chinese purchases of cargoes from the United States," said one US-based analyst.

Soybean by-product soyoil also rose, supported by firm crude oil prices linked in turn to concerns over supply disruptions in Venezuela and unrest in Iran.

Soyoil often tracks crude because it is used in biofuel as a substitute for fossil fuel.

CBOT wheat was down 0.4% at $5.15-3/4 a bushel and CBOT corn edged 0.2% lower to $4.45-1/4 a bushel, though both cereals were set for weekly gains.

The USDA's reports on Monday will include estimates for winter wheat plantings and last year's corn and soybean harvests.