Grains-Soybeans near three-week high on US crop woes, Chinese demand

Oil prices crept higher and bond yields rose, blunting paltry gains for stocks at the start of Asian trading on Tuesday as a U.S.-Iran truce expired and Tehran said it would shift to a "fully offensive" military posture.

The most-active soybean contract on the Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT) Sv1 rose 0.5% to $12.21-1/2 a bushel by 0151 GMT, having hit its highest since July 29 earlier in the session.

Wheat Wv1 added 0.1% to $6.89-3/4 a bushel and corn Cv1 gained 0.3% to $4.91 a bushel.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture lowered its condition ratings for the nation's corn and soybean crops in a weekly report on Monday, in line with trade expectations, after some rainy weeks in the U.S. Midwest.

The agency rated 60% of the corn crop in good-to-excellent condition as of Sunday, down 1 percentage point from a week earlier and the lowest for the 33rd week of the calendar year since 2023.

The USDA rated 61% of the soybean crop in good-to-excellent condition, also down 1 percentage point from last week and the lowest for this time of year since 2023.

Chinese demand continued to support soybeans. Traders told Reuters last week that China had already purchased about 7 million metric tons of U.S. soybeans.

National Oilseed Processors Association data showed NOPA members, which account for nearly all soybeans crushed in the United States, processed 216.647 million bushels of soybeans last month, up 1.1% from June and up 10.7% from July 2025.

Weeks of attacks on shipping by Russia and Ukraine have curtailed shipments, including at Russia's main grain export hub of Novorossiysk.