GRAINS-Soybeans steady but set for second weekly drop on demand woes

CANBERRA, Dec 12 (Reuters) - Chicago soybean futures held steady on Friday, but remained on track for a second weekly drop, as support from a softer U.S. dollar and Chinese buying was offset by pressure from ample supplies and sluggish U.S. exports demand.

Wheat futures rose and corn futures were unchanged amid healthy U.S. export sales of both crops, but while corn was headed for a small weekly gain, wheat was on track for a fourth straight week of decline due to abundant global supply.

FUNDAMENTALS

• The most-active soybean contract on the Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT) Sv1 was flat at $10.93-1/4 a bushel at 0110 GMT and down 1.1% from last Friday's close.

• CBOT wheat Wv1 rose 0.3% to $5.35 a bushel but was down 0.2% for the week, while corn Cv1 was unchanged at $4.46-1/2 a bushel and up 0.4% over the week.

• The U.S. dollar steadied after two days of weakening after the Federal Reserve cut interest rates this week and offered a less hawkish outlook than expected. A weaker dollar makes U.S. crops more competitive in export markets.

• Soybeans rose to a 17-month high of $11.69-1/2 in November on optimism that China would quickly buy large quantities from the United States, but the rally faded as the actual pace of buying disappointed traders.

• That said, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) confirmed sales of 264,000 tons of U.S. soybeans to China and another 226,000 to unknown destinations on Thursday, as well as 186,000 tons of U.S. corn to unknown destinations.

• Meanwhile, China's state stockpiler Sinograin sold most of the soybeans it offered in an auction of state reserves, traders said, the first of what is expected to be a series of sales that would make room for more U.S. supplies.

• In Brazil, the biggest soybean producer, crop agency Conab lowered the country's 2025-26 harvest estimate by around 550,000 metric tons to 177.12 million tons, still a record amount.

• Argentina's Rosario Grains Exchange lifted its forecast for the nation's 2025-26 wheat harvest to a record 27.7 million tons from 24.5 million tons after favourable weather drove higher yields.

MARKETS NEWS

• Major stock indexes mostly rose on Thursday, with the Dow and S&P 500 posting record closing highs, while the dollar and U.S. bond yields extended declines from the day before. MKTS/GLOB