GRAINS-Chicago grains ease as oil rally pauses

PARIS/BEIJING, March 4 (Reuters) - Chicago grain and soybean futures eased on Wednesday as a crude oil rally triggered by U.S.-Israeli strikes on Iran lost momentum.

A backdrop of ample global grain supplies and broadly favourable weather for crops also capped prices, analysts said.

The most-active soybean contract on the Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT) Sv1 was down 0.3% at $11.67-1/4 a bushel by 1327 GMT. The contract had hit its highest since June 2024 on Monday at $11.83.

CBOT wheat Wv1 fell 1.4% to $5.66 a bushel, moving further back from a one-year peak of $5.97 struck last Friday.

CBOT corn Cv1 eased 0.8% to $4.42-3/4 a bushel, after reaching a two-month high at $4.51-3/4 on Tuesday.

A jump in oil prices due to the conflict in the Middle East has lent some support to agricultural markets, given that crops including soybeans and corn are widely processed for biofuel.

However, crude oil turned lower on Wednesday as investors reacted to latest news, including a New York Times report that said Iran's Ministry of Intelligence signalled to the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency openness to talks on ending the war. O/R

Rain forecast in some U.S. winter wheat belts, as well as generally moderate weather for South American corn and soybean crops, continued to cap grain prices.

"Operators remain attentive to the situation in the Persian Gulf but are also closely monitoring the evolution of winter (wheat) conditions, which are benefiting, and should continue to benefit, from the arrival of rainfall," Argus Media said.

Uncertainty over further Chinese demand for U.S. soybeans were also acting as a brake on prices of the oilseed.

Top U.S. and Chinese trade negotiators are expected to meet in mid-March, signalling that plans for a summit between U.S. President Donald Trump and China's Xi Jinping remain on track despite U.S. strikes on Iran, Bloomberg News reported.

The corn market remained underpinned by brisk U.S. exports.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture confirmed private sales of 196,000 metric tons of U.S. corn for shipment to unknown destinations in the 2025/26 marketing year.