CIF/FOB Gulf Grain-Spot soy barge bids ease as winter storm hits Gulf Coast

CHICAGO, Jan 21 (Reuters) - Spot basis bids for soybeans shipped by barge to the U.S. Gulf Coast were weaker on Tuesday as a winter storm halted loading operations at export terminals, backing up supplies bound for the port, traders said.

Sharply higher soybean futures on the Chicago Board of Trade Sv1 further weighed on CIF basis values. Futures rallied as U.S. President Donald Trump did not immediately impose tariffs upon taking office on Monday.

Bad weather, including snow and high winds, halted operations at Gulf terminals on Tuesday, prompting exporters to drop bids for inbound soybean barges. The delays, however, underpinned FOB export premiums because they reduced loading capacity at the tail end of the peak soy export season.

Soybean export demand was slow as top importer China is focused mostly on booking shipments of newly harvested Brazilian soybeans.

CIF corn basis bids were steady to lower, with spot values pressured by loading delays at the Gulf. Firmer barge freight rates on some Midwest rivers limited basis declines.

Ice on Midwest rivers amid harsh cold has slowed barge movement and lock operations, and forecasts for bitterly cold temperatures are expected to cause ice flow problems going into next week.

CIF Gulf soybean barges loaded in January were bid up 2 cents lower at 71 cents over CBOT March soybean SH25 futures.

FOB export premiums for February loadings were a penny higher at 88 cents over March futures.

CIF January corn barges were bid 1 cent lower at 67 cents over CBOT March corn CH25 futures.

FOB offers for corn shipped from the Gulf in February gained 2 cents to 79 cents over March futures.

(Reporting by Karl Plume; Editing by Shailesh Kuber)

((karl.plume@thomsonreuters.com; +1 313 484 5285))

For displays of CIF basis, click on the codes in brackets:
U.S. CIF Gulf soybeans GRYM
U.S. CIF Gulf corn GRYN
U.S. CIF Gulf SRW wheat GRYO
U.S. CIF Gulf HRW wheat GRYP
For displays of FOB basis, please click on the following codes in brackets:
U.S. FOB Gulf corn GRZC
U.S. FOB Gulf soybeans GRZD
U.S. FOB Gulf SRW wheat GRZE
U.S. FOB Gulf HRW wheat GRZF

LINKS Corn prices page:   cpurl://apps.cp./cms/?pageid=corn-cash-market
Wheat prices page:  cpurl://apps.cp./cms/?pageid=wheat-cash-market
U.S. barge freight                  BG/US
U.S. export sales estimates         USDA/EST
U.S. grain export summary           GRA/U
Brazil soybean export prices        SYBS
Brazil corn export prices           SYBX
Argentina grain prices              GRA/ARG
Russia grain prices                 GRA/RU