CIF/FOB Gulf Grain-Soy barge bids firm; corn softens in quiet trade

CHICAGO, May 20 (Reuters) - Soybeans basis bids for barges delivered to U.S. Gulf Coast terminals firmed on Tuesday, while corn barge bids eased, pulling back from the previous day in subdued trade, brokers said.

• A slow pace of farmer selling supported the market, restricting grain movement from the Corn Belt into the supply chain that feed Gulf export terminals. Many farmers are busy with spring field work and content to hold out for higher prices.

• At the Gulf, CIF soybean barges loaded in May were bid at 64 cents over Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT) July SN25 soybean futures, up 1 cent from Monday, while June soy barge bids were unchanged at 66 cents over futures.

• July soybean barges traded at 69 cents over futures.

• FOB export premiums for soybeans loaded from the Gulf in June were offered steady at about 77 cents over July soybean futures.

• For corn, CIF Gulf barges loaded in May were bid at 67 cents over CBOT July corn CN25 futures, down a penny from Monday. June corn barges traded at 68 cents over July futures and were re-bid at 67 cents over futures.

• FOB export premiums for corn shipped from the Gulf in June were offered at about 78 cents over CBOT July corn futures, unchanged from Monday.

• Rains crossed the Dakotas and parts of the Great Lakes region on Tuesday afternoon, slowing field work.

• However, the U.S. planting pace remains ahead of average. The U.S. corn crop was 78% planted and soybean planting was 66% complete, the USDA said on Monday, ahead of the respective five-year averages of 73% for corn and 53% for soybeans.

• China's soybean imports from Brazil fell 22.2% in April from a year earlier, Chinese customs data showed. China imported 4.60 million metric tons of the oilseed from Brazil last month while April soybean arrivals from the U.S., China's second-biggest supplier, fell 43.7% year-on-year.

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