Soybean, corn barge bids weaken

Basis bids for soybeans shipped by barge to U.S. Gulf export terminals softened on Wednesday on cheaper freight costs and slowing exporter demand as Argentine growers increased their soybean offerings, traders said.

* Argentine farmers nearly doubled soybean sales on Tuesday from the day before, the major Buenos Aires grains exchange said, after a preferential exchange rate went into effect for exports of the cash crop.

* CIF Gulf corn basis bids also declined.

* Spot bids for empty barges on Midwest rivers were down 25 to 50 points compared with Friday, although trade was subdued, barge sources said.

* CIF soybean barges loaded in November traded at 140 cents over Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT) January futures (SF3) and were re-bid at the same level, down 6 cents from Tuesday's last bid. December barges traded at 130 cents over futures and were re-bid at 128 cents over, down 17 cents from Tuesday.

* Export premiums for soybeans shipped in the last half of December held steady at around 165 cents over futures.

* For corn, CIF barges loaded in November were bid at 125 cents over CBOT December futures (CZ2), down 5 cents from Tuesday. December corn barges were bid at 117 cents over futures, also down a nickel.

* Corn export premiums for late December loadings were down 2 cents at around 143 cents over December futures.

* The U.S. Department of Agriculture confirmed private sales of 136,000 tonnes of U.S. soybeans to China for delivery in the 2022/23 marketing year that began Sept. 1.

* Ahead of Thursday's weekly USDA export sales report, traders expected the government to report U.S. old-crop corn sales in the week ended Nov. 24 at 475,000 to 1,000,000 tonnes, old-crop soybean sales at 550,000 to 1,000,000 tonnes and old-crop wheat sales at 300,000 to 625,000 tonnes.