GRAINS-Chicago soybeans retreat from nearly 10-month high as soyoil slumps; wheat rises

By Ella Cao and Lewis Jackson

BEIJING, May 15 (Reuters) - Chicago soybean futures fell on Thursday from the nearly 10-month high hit in the last session, weighed down by a sharp decline in soyoil prices following crude oil's drop on a surprise U.S. inventory build and renewed hopes for a U.S.-Iran nuclear deal.

Soybean oil BOcv1 fell 4.8% to 49.81 cents per pound, marking the steepest daily percentage drop since July 2024.

The most-active CBOT soybean contract Sv1 eased 0.97% to $10.67 a bushel, ending a five-session winning streak.

Oil prices lost nearly $1 in early trade, indirectly weighing on biofuel-related commodities like soybean oil and corn.

Optimism over a temporary truce in the U.S.-China trade war lent some support to soybean prices, but traders and analysts warned of uncertainty ahead of the U.S. marketing season.

On Wednesday, agribusiness consultancy AgResource warned U.S. soybean exports may drop 20% and that prices will plunge if the U.S. and China fail to resolve their trade dispute.

Corn prices are under pressure from the imminent Brazilian harvest, though concerns about potential unfavourable weather during the U.S. summer have provided some underlying support.

Brazil's 2024-25 corn output is estimated to be about 125 million metric tons, according to the Brazilian Association of Corn and Sorghum Producers.

Wheat Wv1 rose 0.05% to $5.25 a bushel, stabilising after hitting its lowest in nearly five years on Wednesday.

"Wheat is just stabilising after a big run-up overnight, said Ole Houe, director of advisory services at IKON Commodities in Sydney, adding that prices will likely strengthen further due to dryness concerns in hard red winter wheat growing areas.

Traders are waiting for the U.S. Department of Agriculture's weekly export sales report, due later in the day.

Commodity funds were net buyers of corn, wheat, soybean and soyoil futures contracts on Wednesday, traders said. They were net sellers of soymeal futures, traders said. COMFUND/CBT