Soybeans Find Strength to Close the Week

Soybeans exhibited strength in closing out the week, gaining 5 ½ to 11 ¾ cents across most contracts. September soybeans surged 18 ¾ cents for the week, while November contracts increased by 16 ¼ cents. The national average Cash Bean price for soybeans reached $11.50, with the Soymeal futures closing at $2.80 per ton, marking a 10 cent rise.

Soy Oil prices climbed 9 to 65 points, with September contracts reaching $120, up 120 points for the week. August futures contracts in the complex ended their trading session today. The USDA reported a private export sale of 136,000 metric tons of soybeans to China, bringing the total sales this week to 641,000 metric tons, all destined for China.

Coffee prices found support from a slow Brazil harvest, and US consumers showed no concern over soaring beef prices. A historic cattle shortage is prompting Tyson Foods to close plants despite the shortage. Coffee prices received a boost from the slow harvest in Brazil. The latest Commitment of Traders data showed that managed money cut back 24,104 contracts from their net long position in the week ending August 11, reducing their net long to 101,362 contracts.

USDA Export Sales data indicated that old crop soybean sales are at 41.79 million metric tons, or 101% of the USDA forecast, which is close to the average sales pace over the past few years. Shipments were at 39.587 million metric tons, which is 96% of the USDA's projection. New crop bean sales reached 10.13 million metric tons, marking a 4-year high and more than double the sales from the same period last year.

The NOPA data will be released on Monday, with traders anticipating an estimated 221.5 million bushels of soybeans crushed in July, surpassing the same period last year by more than 25 million bushels. Soybean oil stocks are projected at 1.454 billion pounds. China's Sinograin will auction off another 360,000 metric tons of imported beans on Wednesday.