GRAINS-Soybeans ease to nearly 6-week low on harvest pressure, lack of China demand

By Naveen Thukral

SINGAPORE, Sept 24 (Reuters) - Chicago soybeans slid to a nearly six-week low on Wednesday, giving up some of last session's gains as the market was weighed down by harvest pressure and China's absence from the U.S. market.

Corn and wheat rose on bargain-buying.

"China is buying soybeans from Brazil and Argentina," said one trader in Singapore. "U.S. market is facing pressure as there is no demand from China and U.S. harvest is gathering pace."

The most-active soybean contract on the Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT) Sv1 fell 0.2% to $10.10 a bushel as of 0223 GMT, not far from the six-week low of $10.05 hit on Tuesday.

Corn Cv1 added 0.1% to $4.26-1/2 a bushel and wheat Wv1 rose 0.4% to $5.22-1/2 a bushel.

China has yet to buy soybean cargoes from the autumn U.S. harvest, an unusual delay, amid the Washington-Beijing trade war and the window for possible deals is shrinking, traders said.

There was increased competition from South America.

On Monday, Argentina temporarily eliminated export taxes on soybeans, grains and their byproducts, as well as on beef and poultry, in a bid to speed up sales abroad and rake in much-needed dollars to prop up the flagging peso.

Chinese buyers booked at least 10 cargoes of Argentine soybeans, three traders said, dealing another setback to U.S. farmers already shut out of their top market and hit by low prices.

Hopes of a resumption in U.S. soybean trade with China were dashed when a call on Friday between U.S. President Donald Trump and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping brought no news on agricultural commodities.

Soybean and corn futures were also facing seasonal supply pressure from the onset of the U.S. harvest, though doubts over yields have helped underpin markets.

The U.S. corn harvest was 11% complete by Sunday and the soybean harvest was 9% finished, per U.S. government data.