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US Biofuels Update: Favorable Seasonal Crop Weather Caps Gains for Soybean Futures

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Biofuels feedstock futures closed mixed on Tuesday, as the soybean market moved higher on sales to China.

The Chicago Board of Trade July soybean futures contract closed 0.11 higher at $11.17 per bushel, and the CBOT July soybean oil futures contract settled 0.79% lower at 70.59 cents per pound.

The Nymex July ethanol futures contract settled 1.61% lower on Monday at $1.83 per gallon.

Rhett Montgomery, a DTN analyst, said the traders remain focused on each updated weather forecast for US crops in June and July.

"Looking ahead for US weather, temperatures are forecasted to trend above average towards the end of June and beginning of July, while precipitation across the Corn Belt may become at least temporarily sparser. Rainfall through May and June has left much of the Belt in good shape in terms of soil moisture," Montgomery said in a daily note.

On Monday, the US Department of Agriculture reported that 97% of the US corn crop has emerged and that 68% is rated in good or excellent, or G/E, condition nationwide.

The 10-year average for US corn G/E ratings over the June through September period is roughly 65% for comparison, while the average over the past decade for this week in June is 67%.

Montgomery noted that the US Department of Agriculture reported on Monday that 93% of the US soybean crop had emerged nationwide by the start of the week, continuing to outpace the seasonal average for mid-June.

Crop conditions remained stable, with 66% of the soybean crop rated good to excellent, the analyst said.

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