CIF/FOB Gulf Grain-Soy, corn barge basis mostly flat as traders monitor Iran war

CHICAGO, May 8 (Reuters) - Spot basis bids for soybeans and corn shipped by barge to U.S. Gulf Coast terminals were mostly steady on Friday as traders monitored efforts to end the war between the U.S. and Iran.

• Attempts to resolve the conflict appeared to stall as the two sides traded fire in the Gulf.

• Escalations in the war could jeopardize U.S. President Donald Trump's plans to travel next week to China, the world's biggest soybean importer, for a summit with Chinese President Xi Jinping, a trader said.

• If a ceasefire ends, the summit could focus on the war and give less attention to agricultural issues, a trader said.

• U.S. soybean futures rose as traders anticipated that China may make a soybean purchase ahead of the summit.

• At the Gulf, CIF soybean barges loaded in May were bid at 78 cents over Chicago Board of Trade July SN26 futures. On Thursday, traders said there was no bid.

• FOB export premiums for Gulf soybean vessels loaded in June were steady at around 99 cents over July SN26 soybean futures.

• For corn, CIF barges loaded in May were bid at 80 cents over CBOT July CN26 futures, after trading at 80 cents and 81 cents over futures on Thursday.

• FOB export premiums for Gulf corn vessels loaded in June were unchanged at around 104 cents over July CN26 futures.

• On Monday, the U.S. Department of Agriculture is slated to issue weekly data on the farmers' planting progress. Traders said weather conditions looked generally favorable for U.S. corn and soy plantings.

• On Tuesday, USDA supply/demand data is expected to show 2026-27 U.S. ending stocks at 1.933 billion bushels for corn and 364 million bushels for soybeans, according to a Reuters poll of analysts.

For displays of CIF basis, click on the codes in brackets:

U.S. CIF Gulf soybeans GRYM

U.S. CIF Gulf corn GRYN

U.S. CIF Gulf SRW wheat GRYO

U.S. CIF Gulf HRW wheat GRYP

For displays of FOB basis, please click on the following codes in brackets:

U.S. FOB Gulf corn GRZC

U.S. FOB Gulf soybeans GRZD

U.S. FOB Gulf SRW wheat GRZE

U.S. FOB Gulf HRW wheat GRZF

LINKS

Corn prices page: cpurl://apps.cp./cms/?pageid=corn-cash-market

Wheat prices page: cpurl://apps.cp./cms/?pageid=wheat-cash-market

U.S. barge freight BG/US

U.S. export sales estimates USDA/EST

U.S. grain export summary GRA/U

Brazil soybean export prices SYBS

Brazil corn export prices SYBX

Argentina grain prices GRA/ARG

Russia grain prices GRA/RU