CANBERRA, March 9 (Reuters) - U.S. soybean futures rose for a fourth consecutive session on Tuesday as concerns about crops in South America pushed prices towards a more than six-year top.

FUNDAMENTALS

* The most-active soybean futures on the Chicago Board of Trade were up 0.4% to $14.39 a bushel by 0231 GMT, having firmed 0.3% on Monday when prices hit a June 2014 high of $14.60 a bushel.

* Corn futures were down 0.6% to $5.44 a bushel, having gained 0.3% in the previous session.

* Wheat futures were down 0.1% at $6.45-3/4 a bushel, having closed down 1% on Monday.

* Brazilian farmers had harvested an estimated 35% of the planted soybean area through last Thursday, down from 49% a year ago and the slowest pace in a decade, agribusiness consultancy AgRural said.

* The quality of the crops are also being affected by damp conditions.

* Analysts expect the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) will on Tuesday lower its estimates for 2020/21 ending stocks for soybeans and corn.

* USDA rated 36% of the winter wheat in Kansas, the top U.S. producer, in good to excellent condition, down from 37% a week earlier.

* But ratings improved in Oklahoma, with 53% of the state's crop rated good to excellent, up from 46% the previous week.

MARKET NEWS

* The U.S. dollar held near a 3-1/2-month high against its rivals on Tuesday as higher bond yields and expectations of faster economic normalisation from the pandemic in the United States put the U.S. currency at an advantage.

* Oil prices rose on expectations of a recovery in the global economy after U.S. Senate approval of a $1.9 trillion stimulus bill and on a likely drawdown in crude oil inventory in the United States.

* Asian stocks were set for a strong open, helped mostly by global recovery prospects and the passage of the stimulus bill, shaking off a mixed Wall Street session after a big downturn in tech shares. (Reporting by Colin Packham)