Chicago Board of Trade soyabean futures closed higher on Tuesday after the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) confirmed more export sales to China, traders said. CBOT March soyabeans settled up 1-3/4 cents at $9.20-1/4 per bushel. The contract was lower early in the session, but it failed to breach chart support at its 20-day moving average and turned higher near the close. CBOT March soyameal ended down $1.10 at $309.50 per short ton and March soyaoil rose 0.25 cent to 30.38 cents per pound.

Traders remained cautious ahead of a USDA report on Friday which will feature key supply and demand data that was delayed by the recent US government shutdown. The USDA on Tuesday confirmed that China purchased 2.6 million tonnes of US soyabeans for shipment during the current 2018/19 season. The agency also said that 274,000 tonnes were sold to unknown destinations.

The USDA confirmation was the second sales announcement this week after the agency reported 612,000 tonnes in soyabean sales to China on Monday. Beijing pledged last week to purchase 5 million tonnes of US soyabeans as a good-will gesture during US-China talks to end the trade war between the countries. Statistics Canada said canola stocks reached a record of 14.6 million tonnes in December.

Copyright Reuters, 2019