GRAINS-Wheat falls for fifth day after China cancels purchases from US

CANBERRA, Dec 18 (Reuters) - Chicago wheat futures fell for a fifth consecutive session on Thursday and hovered near eight-week lows, after China cancelled purchases from the U.S. and as large harvests in Argentina and Australia poured new grain into a well-supplied market.

Soybean futures steadied after the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) confirmed sales to China and "unknown destinations" and oil prices recovered some ground.

Corn rose for a second day due to strong U.S. export demand, though pressure from low wheat prices limited gains. Wheat competes with corn in the animal feed market.

FUNDAMENTALS

• The most-active wheat contract on the Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT) Wv1 was down 0.1% at $5.06 a bushel, as of 0230 GMT, after falling to $5.04 on Wednesday, its lowest since October 23.

• CBOT soybeans Sv1 rose 0.1% to $10.59-1/4 a bushel, having slipped to a seven-week low of $10.53-1/2 in the previous session.

• Corn Cv1 was up 0.3% at $4.41-3/4 a bushel, heading back towards a six-month high of $4.52-1/4 reached on December 2.

• Wheat and soybean prices have slumped about 10% from highs last month. Wheat supply is abundant, while U.S. soy has faced lacklustre export demand and competition from cheaper Brazilian beans.

• Exporters cancelled sales of 132,000 metric tons of U.S. white wheat to China, the USDA said. The reason for the cancellation was not known but traders said Argentine wheat was available at lower prices.

• Progress in peace negotiations to end the war in Ukraine have weighed on wheat prices, but a ceasefire may still be some way off, with Russian President Vladimir Putin saying he would take more land by force if Kyiv and European politicians did not engage with U.S. proposals for a peace settlement.

• Russian attacks on Black Sea ports and energy facilities have reduced Ukrainian wheat exports by forcing the shutdown of some export terminals, Ukrainian farmers' union UAC said on Wednesday.

• The USDA confirmed 177,055 tons in U.S. corn sales to Mexico, and a South Korean importer bought 268,000 tons, which traders said was likely to be shipped from the United States.

MARKETS NEWS

• Asian shares fell on Thursday as the tech sector took a beating on renewed angst about AI spending, while investors braced for a wave of central bank meetings set to underscore policy divergence worldwide. MKTS/GLOB