Soybeans fall to lowest since October on slow pace of Chinese buying

Chicago soybean futures on Monday fell below $11 for the first time since October amid speculation that China will not buy enough U.S. beans to sustain higher prices and after the U.S. government forecast an increase in U.S. soy planting. Wheat and corn futures edged lower, pressured by ample global supply. The most-active soybean contract on the Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT) was down 0.8% at $10.96-1/2 a bushel at 0438 GMT after touching $10.96, the lowest since October 30. Soybeans have now fallen more than 6% from a 17-month high of $11.69-1/2 reached last month after a trade truce between Washington and Beijing renewed Chinese purchases of U.S. soy. However, the pace of Chinese buying has underwhelmed traders, with Friday’s sale of 462,000 metric tons bringing total U.S. soybean sales to China to about 2.7 million tons since the truce was struck. U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said in October that China would quickly buy 12 million tons of U.S. soybeans. Last week, he ...