CIF/FOB Gulf Grain-Soybean barge basis slumps in nearby loadings; corn firms

CHICAGO, Nov 13 (Reuters) - Basis bids for soybeans shipped by barge to the U.S. Gulf Coast slumped on Thursday, as prices continued to roil ahead of key government data reports and uncertainty over Chinese export demand, traders said.

• Meanwhile, basis bids for corn loadings firmed - and the Chicago Board of Trade's benchmark December corn CZ25 futures hit a near five-month high - ahead of Friday's long-awaited supply-demand reports from the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

• CIF Gulf soybean barges loaded in November were bid at 63 cents a bushel over Chicago Board of Trade January SF26 futures, down 7 cents from Wednesday.

• FOB export premiums for soybeans loaded in December were steady at around 103 cents over CBOT January SF26 futures.

• CIF Gulf corn barges loaded in November were up 2 cents at 81 cents over CBOT December CZ25 corn futures.

• FOB export premiums for December corn shipments were steady at around 97 cents over futures.

• Taiwan' MFIG purchasing group bought about 65,000 metric tons of animal feed corn expected to be sourced from the United States in an international tender on Thursday, European traders said.

• Spot river freight costs have remained steady to firm this week on tight barge supplies, even though demand for nearby loadings has been a bit spotty, dealers said. BG/US