By Kirk Maltais


-- Soybeans for November delivery fell 1.4% to $13.67 1/2 a bushel, on the Chicago Board of Trade on Thursday, with traders choosing to close out the month on a cautious note ahead of a long holiday weekend.

-- Wheat for December delivery fell 1% to $6.01 1/4 a bushel.

-- Corn for December delivery fell 0.3% to $4.79 1/4 a bushel.


HIGHLIGHTS


Closing Out the Month: Grain traders hedged their bets on futures today. The move down in soybeans in particular is linked to profit-taking after concerns for heat hitting U.S. crops lifted futures in recent sessions. Meanwhile, wheat has dropped below the $6 a bushel mark for most of the day, before finishing slightly above that mark. "There is no geopolitical and weather premium in U.S. futures," said Steve Freed of ADM Investor Services in a note, referring to wheat.

Flexing Muscles: A climbing U.S. dollar index pressured grain futures, setting in more so later in the trading session. The U.S. dollar index rose 0.4% today, with the index retracing some recent losses as economic data shows stubborn inflation in the U.S. and a resilient jobs market. "None of this takes the Fed down the road of cutting rates," said Ira Epstein of Linn & Associates in a note. A stronger dollar makes U.S. grain exports less attractive in a world market with stiff competition coming out of South America and Russia.


INSIGHT


Big Changes: The September WASDE report is over a week away, but grain traders are focused on what the report may say when it comes to crop production and yields. "The weather is still causing concern, with high temperatures across a large part of the producing states," said AgriTel in a note. "The adjustments made by the USDA in the report due out on September 12 are likely to be significant and cause volatility." The expectations for revisions to these figures comes after Pro Farmer's Crop Tour last week, which showed reductions in crop production and yields.

Shallow Waters: Lower water levels on the Mississippi River since June are limiting the amount of grain that can be loaded on barges heading to ports, said the USDA in its weekly Grain Transportation Report. The USDA says that water levels are expected to keep falling in the coming weeks, which in turn will further limit the amount of grains barges can carry and thusly constricting the available amount of barges. "The tight supply has resulted in a significant increase in barge spot rates," said the USDA, adding that as of Aug. 29, spot rates at St. Louis reached $23.34 per ton, which is up 49% from last week and 85% higher than the 3-year average.

Sales Improvement: Export sales of U.S. corn and soybeans surged for the 2023/24 marketing year, but were negative in the current 2022/23 marketing year, according to the USDA's latest weekly export sales report. The USDA says that sales of corn in 2023/24 for the week ended Aug. 24 totaled 991,800 metric tons, and soybeans totaled 1.12 million tons. However, net corn sales for 2022/23 were a net reduction of 71,700 tons, while net 2022/23 soybean sales were a net reduction of 50,700 tons. Reductions for unknown destinations for 2022/23 corn and soybeans both offset any sales this week - with 'unknown destinations' perceived by the market often denote China.


AHEAD


--The USDA will release its monthly Grain Crushings report at 3 p.m. ET Friday.

--The CFTC will release its weekly Commitment of Traders report at 3:30 p.m. ET Friday.

--The USDA and CBOT will be closed in observance of Labor Day on Monday, reopening Tuesday.


Write to Kirk Maltais at kirk.maltais@wsj.com


(END) Dow Jones Newswires

08-31-23 1547ET