US Cash Grains-Corn, soy basis mostly steady-weak as harvest looms

CHICAGO, Sept 9 (Reuters) - Spot basis bids for corn and soybeans were mostly steady to weaker in the U.S. Midwest on Tuesday as grain elevators and processors prepared for the autumn harvest, merchandisers said.

• Early harvesting was already under way in some areas. The corn crop was 4% harvested nationally, the U.S. Agriculture Department said in Monday's weekly crop progress report, and harvesting was 2% complete in Illinois and 1% in Indiana.

• The corn basis fell by 4 cents at a big processing plant in Blair, Nebraska, and at a Columbus, Ohio, rail terminal. But the basis firmed by 2 cents at an elevator in Council Bluffs, Iowa.

• For soybeans, the basis fell by 10 cents a bushel at a crushing facility in Lafayette, Indiana, and by 5 cents at Morris, Illinois, along the Illinois River.

• But the basis for prompt deliveries of soybeans improved by 10 cents at Sioux City, Iowa, soy crushing site. Supplies of soymeal, a feed ingredient, are tight, buoying demand for soybeans in a few areas as crushers work to bridge the supply gap until the 2025 soybean harvest begins.

• Elsewhere, soybean demand was slow as some crushers are down for seasonal maintenance ahead of the harvest.

• Chicago Board of Trade November soybean futures SX25 settled down 2-1/2 cents at $10.31-1/4 a bushel and CBOT December corn CZ25 ended down 2 cents at $4.19-3/4 a bushel.

• Market players await updated monthly U.S. crop production estimates due from the USDA on Friday.

Basis values are quoted against CBOT futures in cents/bu:

NOTE: 0 = Option Price, UNC = Unchanged, UNQ = Unquoted, NC = Not Comparable, DP = Delayed Price, N/A = Not Available, F = January, H = March, K = May, N = July, Q = August, U = September, X = November, Z = December

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LINKS: 0#USCSHGRN-AM

For U.S. forward basis spreadsheets, please click on:

CORN/BASIS, SOYA/BASIS, WHEAT/BASIS, MILO/BASIS

- CBOT corn report COR/

- CBOT soybean report SOY/C

- CBOT wheat report WHE/C

- U.S. grain barge freight values BG/US

- U.S. Midwest cash grain AM GRA/M

- U.S. CIF/FOB Gulf Grain GRA/F