Soybeans edge higher as soyoil rises on Middle East tensions; corn dips on favourable weather

Chicago soybean futures inched higher on Monday, supported in part by gains in soyoil prices after a U.S. strike on Iranian nuclear facilities stoked concerns of global crude oil supplies.

The most-active soybean contract ZS1! rose 0.09% to $10.61-6/8 per bushel, as of 0301 GMT. Soyoil ZL1! climbed 1.14% to 55.09 cents per pound.

Oil prices surged after the U.S. targeted key Iranian nuclear sites over the weekend, an escalation that lent support to soyoil, which is closely tied to biofuel demand.

"Fundamentally, not much has changed since the end of the week," said Andrew Whitelaw, agricultural consultant at Episode 3. "Speculators pulled back their net short positions, which is not surprising, considering the uncertainty about the attacks on Iran by Israel, and now the U.S."

Traders and analysts are closely watching for Iran's response to the U.S. strikes.

"The concern will now be about retaliation from Iran, and its proxies in the region. If there are concerns to supply chains, this could cause the market to rally further as crude oil prices rise," Whitelaw added.

U.S. soybean prices remain under pressure due to weak demand and ample global supplies.

In top buyer China , soybean imports from Brazil surged 37.5% last month from a year earlier, data showed on Friday, as buyers scooped up South America's bumper crop, while supplies from the United States also rose 28.3%.

Wheat ZW1! traded flat at $5.83 a bushel, after last week's strong rally. Gains were capped by harvest pressure, as the accelerating U.S. winter wheat harvest increases supply.

Corn ZC1! slipped 0.41% to $4.27 per bushel, marking its lowest level of 2025. Favourable weather across much of the U.S. Midwest has improved crop prospects, putting pressure on prices.

Commodity funds were net sellers of Chicago Board of Trade wheat, corn, soyoil and soybean futures contracts on Friday and net buyers of soymeal futures, traders said. (COMFUND/CBT)