SINGAPORE, Oct 17 (Reuters) - Chicago soybean futures inched higher on Tuesday, with concerns over planting delays in Brazil supporting prices, although gains were limited by a rapidly advancing U.S. harvest.
Corn eased, while wheat was almost flat.
FUNDAMENTALS
* The most-active soybean contract on the Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT) rose 0.1% to $12.87-1/2 a bushel, as of 0023 GMT. Corn gave up 0.2% to $4.89-1/4 a bushel and wheat was unchanged at $5.77-1/4 a bushel.
* Brazil's 2023/24 soybean planting had reached as of last Thursday 17% of the expected area, agribusiness consultancy AgRural said on Monday, losing steam as farmers struggle with adverse weather conditions.
* U.S. farmers had harvested nearly two thirds of their soybean crop and 45% of their corn by Sunday, while soybean condition ratings improved, according to weekly data from the U.S. Agriculture Department released on Monday.
* Analysts expected harvesting to be 46% complete for corn and 57% complete for soybeans.
* The U.S. soybean crush jumped last month to the highest-ever level for September, while end-of-month soyoil stocks thinned to the lowest in nearly nine years, according to National Oilseed Processors Association (NOPA) data released on Monday.
* Competition in the wheat market from Black Sea origins remains strong. Russia's IKAR agriculture consultancy raised slightly its forecasts for the country's overall grain production and exports this season.
* Russian wheat export prices continued to decline last week amid reduced demand, analysts said.
* The price of 12.5%-protein Russian wheat scheduled for free-on-board (FOB) delivery in November was $225 per metric ton last week, down $5 from the week before, the IKAR agriculture consultancy reported.
* Commodity funds were net sellers of CBOT corn, wheat and soymeal futures contracts on Monday, and net buyers of soybeans and soyoil, traders said.
MARKET NEWS
* Wall Street jumped and benchmark Treasury yields climbed on Monday as investors embarked upon the first full week of third-quarter earnings while keeping a close eye on the Israel-Hamas conflict.
DATA/EVENTS (GMT) 0600 UK Claimant Count Unem Chng Sept 0600 UK ILO Unemployment Rate Aug 0600 UK HMRC Payrolls Change Sept 0900 Germany ZEW Economic Sentiment Oct 0900 Germany ZEW Current Conditions Oct 1230 US Retail Sales MM Sept 1315 US Industrial Production MM Sept (Reporting by Naveen Thukral; Editing by Subhranshu Sahu)
