GRAINS-Grain futures slump to multi-month lows with US planting, exports in focus

By P.J. Huffstutter

CHICAGO, March 28 (Reuters) - Chicago Board of Trade corn futures on Friday slumped to the lowest price seen in more than three months on expectations of increased U.S. planting this year, while wheat hit a nearly eight-month low as traders focused on sluggish exports and rain relief in parts of the U.S. Plains.

Soybeans also fell, with a day-earlier rally in byproduct soy oil petering out.

Like other commodities, grain markets were subdued before broad tariffs promised by U.S. President Donald Trump from April 2, as well as proposed U.S. port fees on Chinese-built vessels.

"There's just a general lack of buying interest ahead of month-end, quarter-end and this USDA report on Monday," said Karl Setzer, partner at Consus Ag Consulting. "When you look at all the markets, not just grains, the only thing up today is interest rates and gold."

The U.S. Department of Agriculture's planting report will be issued together with quarterly estimates of U.S. grain stocks in one of the most closely watched data releases of the year for grain markets.

U.S. farmers will plant 94.361 million acres with corn this year, up from 90.594 million in 2024, according to an average of analysts polled by Reuters before the USDA publication.

Expectations of a jump in U.S. corn acres have pressured prices this week, said market analysts, taking attention away from dry crop conditions in parts of Brazil.

The most-active CBOT corn contract Cv1 was down 0.44% at $4.48 a bushel by 1527 GMT, after earlier reaching its lowest since December 20 at $4.42 a bushel.

CBOT soybeans Sv1 was 0.27% lower at $10.14 a bushel. And CBOT wheat Wv1 was down 1.79% at $5.22-1/2 a bushel, after dropping to the lowest since July 31 at $5.17-1/2.

Forecast rain for U.S. and Russian wheat belts and a low volume of U.S. wheat export sales reported on Thursday also pushed wheat futures lower.

And a U.S.-backed deal this week aimed at a ceasefire in the Black Sea has also weighed on wheat markets, increasing the prospects of smoother exports from Russia and Ukraine.