Soybeans plummet to four-year low on Brazil crop outlook
Soybeans hit contract lows on big Brazilian crop forecast
Wheat choppy as traders assessed global crop conditions
Corn ticks down on spillover weakness from soy
Updates with market close
By Heather Schlitz
CHICAGO, Dec 18 (Reuters) -Chicago soybean futures fell to a four-year low on Wednesday, pressured by bumper crop prospects in Brazil and a slide in soyoil prices after a proposed U.S. government spending bill failed to include support for biodiesel, traders said.
Corn futures followed soybeans lower, while wheat ended down as traders weighed a cut to Russian wheat production estimates against strong harvests in Australia and Argentina.
A stronger dollar has also weighed on U.S. grain and soy futures.
The most-active soybean contract Sv1 on the Chicago Board of Trade ended down 25 cents at $9.51-3/4 a bushel, after hitting $9.50-1/4 a bushel, its lowest point since September 2020.
Each soybean contract hit a lifetime low during Tuesday's and Wednesday's sessions.
In Brazil, the world's biggest soybean producer and exporter, rain has eased drought and put the country on course for a record crop of 171.5 million metric tons, AgRural consultants said on Monday.
Soybeans were further dented by sharp losses for soyoil after news on Tuesday that a stopgap U.S. government funding bill did not include support for biodiesel among other agriculture-related policies and spending.
Technical selling has further propelled soybeans downward.
"It's a technical break that's attracting more selling as we go lower," said Joe Davis, a trader at Futures International.
CBOT corn Cv1 ended 6-1/4 cents lower at $4.37-1/4 a bushel as it came under pressure from weakness in soybeans.
CBOT wheat Wv1 settled down 3-3/4 cents to $5.41-1/4 a bushel.
Sovecon consultants cut their forecast for 2025 wheat production in Russia by 3 million tons, to 78.7 million, citing crop conditions as the worst in decades.
However, ongoing harvests in Argentina and Australia have exceeded expectations and pressured global prices.
Reporting by Heather Schlitz in Chicago. Additional reporting by Gus Trompiz in Paris and Peter Hobson in Canberra; Editing by Sherry Jacob-Phillips, Mohammed Safi Shamsi, Aurora Ellis and Rod Nickel
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