GRAINS-U.S. soybean and corn futures end week strong; wheat falls

(Updates with closing prices, adds market analyst quote) By Mark Weinraub CHICAGO, March 3 (Reuters) - U.S. soybean futures rose for the third consecutive day on Friday, supported by expectations that the soy crop in global supplier Argentina is smaller than estimated because of damage from drought conditions. "Behind the support in the market is the simple fact that this is horrible finishing weather for the soybeans in Argentina," Charlie Sernatinger of Marex Capital said in a note to clients. Corn futures were firm, with traders saying that the market was technically oversold after the most-active contract sank to its lowest since August on Wednesday. Wheat futures were weaker, easing on hopes that grain exports from Ukraine's Black Sea ports will continue to be shipped even amid concerns about the renewal of a deal with Russia that is set to expire in the coming weeks. Traders were staking out positions ahead of the U.S. Agriculture Department's monthly World Agricultural Supply and Demand Estimates (WASDE) report that will be released on March 8.

Analysts had forecast reductions in U.S. soybean supplies due to rising demand and a smaller harvest outlook for Argentina. "Most people believe that the WASDE report is going to show a huge cut in the Argentinian soybean crop," said Mark Gold, managing partner at Top Third Ag Marketing.

Chicago Board of Trade May soybean futures settled up 9-1/2 cents at $15.18-3/4 a bushel and posted a weekly loss of 0.03%. CBOT May corn was up 6 cents at $6.39-3/4 a bushel and CBOT May soft red winter wheat was down 4 cents at $7.08-3/4 a bushel. Corn futures fell 1.5% this week and wheat futures dropped 1.8%.

Ukraine sees no need to limit wheat exports for the 2023/24 July-June season as the winter harvest looks to be larger than expected, albeit smaller than in peacetime, a top agriculture ministry official said. (Additional reporting by Matthew Chye in Singapore and Sybille de La Hamaide in Paris; Editing by Kirsten Donovan and Grant McCool)

Messaging: mark.weinraub.thomsonreuters.com@reuters.net))

Reuters

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GRAINS-U.S. soybean and corn futures end week strong; wheat falls

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