As of 1:02 p.m. CST (1902 GMT), Chicago Board of Trade March wheat was up 3-1/4 cents at $5.23-1/4 per bushel after reaching $5.24, the contract's highest since Feb. 7. CBOT March soyabeans were down 1-1/4 cents at $9.16-1/4 per bushel while March corn was up 1/2 cent at $3.86-3/4 a bushel. Wheat firmed as commodity funds rolled short positions forward ahead of the March contract's delivery period, which begins later this month.
Trade in CBOT corn and soyabean futures was subdued as brokers continued to monitor US trade negotiations with China, the world's top soyabean buyer. US Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said on Wednesday trade talks with China were progressing well, a day after President Donald Trump cheered investors by saying he could let the March 1 deadline for a trade agreement with China "slide for a little while."
Mnuchin and US Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer arrived in Beijing on Tuesday and are scheduled to hold talks on Thursday and Friday with Chinese Vice Premier Liu He, the top economic adviser to President Xi Jinping.