GRAINS-Wheat eases after gains driven by Black Sea jitters

PARIS/BEIJING, Dec 3 (Reuters) - Chicago wheat futures edged down on Wednesday after the previous day's rally as traders watched to see if military escalation in the Black Sea would affect grain trade.

Soybean futures steadied after a two-day drop as the market continued to assess Chinese demand after a trade truce between Washington and Beijing.

Corn eased after hitting a six-month high on Tuesday with support from wheat.

The most active wheat contract Wv1 on the Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT) was down 0.42% at $5.38-3/4 a bushel by 1330 GMT.

The benchmark had gained 1% on Tuesday, rebounding from a three-week low as Russian President Vladimir Putin threatened to cut off Ukraine's access to the Black Sea after drone attacks on Russia-linked vessels.

The escalation unsettled the wheat market, which has been able to rely on large flows of Russian and Ukrainian grain during most of the war in Ukraine.

"Some war-risk premium returned to prices; something the market has not seen in a while. The move was modest and, if the situation does not escalate further, it is likely to be short-lived," CM Navigator analyst Donatas Jankauskas said in a note.

Ample global supplies, bolstered by bumper crops being harvested in Argentina and Australia, remained a curb on wheat prices.

Wheat traders were also awaiting results from Wednesday's tender by major importer Algeria to gauge competition, including from Argentina's cheap new crop.

CBOT soybeans Sv1 were up 0.04% at $11.25-1/4 a bushel while CBOT corn Cv1 dipped 0.72% to $4.46-3/4 a bushel.

U.S. shipments to China are gaining momentum, with at least six bulk cargo vessels scheduled to load with soybeans at Gulf Coast terminals through mid-December, according to a shipping schedule seen by Reuters on Tuesday.

However, there were still doubts whether Chinese purchases will reach a 12 million metric ton year-end target cited by the White House.

Traders were also monitoring South American crop weather for soybeans and corn.

In Brazil, soybean production is expected to reach 177.2 million tons in 2025/26, brokerage and consulting firm StoneX said on Monday, trimming its outlook from November.

"Expectations of a larger Brazilian crop are bearish, though ongoing South American dryness may add a weather premium, keeping production prospects the key driver for CBOT prices," said Capital Jingdu Futures analyst Wan Chengzhi.