By Kirk Maltais

--Wheat for September delivery fell 1%, to $6.77 a bushel, on the Chicago Board of Trade Monday, in reaction to indications of higher amounts of rain in crop-growing regions globally.

--Soybeans for November delivery rose 0.4%, to $13.57 3/4 a bushel.

--Corn for December delivery rose 0.7%, to $5.46 3/4 a bushel.

HIGHLIGHTS

World Watch: CBOT grain futures start trading this week lower, with wheat staying lower throughout the day. The onset of rains in both U.S. growing areas and other growing areas worldwide pressured grains today, said Terry Reilly of Futures International. "Rains are starting to pick up for Brazil which is needed for the wheat crop and upcoming soybean planting season," said Mr. Reilly. In the U.S., scattered showers were reported across growing areas over the weekend, but more are needed to adequately replenish soil moisture, said DTN.

In Wait: Many grains traders anxiously await the USDA's next crop progress report at 4 p.m. ET to show if hot temperatures have caused any further damage to crop conditions. "USDA will update its crop ratings again this afternoon, providing more fodder," said Arlan Suderman of StoneX. "It will be very hot in the west to stress crops the next 4-5 days, before conditions moderate some into next week."

INSIGHTS

Tense Relations: Grain traders are watching for news this week on new Chinese purchases of U.S. grains exports. "Ag traders will be watching to see if China returns following the U.S./China meetings with new purchases of U.S. ag goods," said AgResource. "It is expected that China will continue to fulfill its obligation under the January 2020 Phase 1 Trade Agreement which is $43.6 billion in 2021. China needs the U.S.'s ag goods and trade is one thing that both sides seem to agree on--a start for communications." Relations between the U.S. and China have stayed tense as the Biden Administration has continued many of the policies enacted by the Trump Administration.

Main Destination: Corn export inspections remain largely supported by inspections of exports destined for China, according to USDA data. In the USDA's weekly report, corn export inspections totaled 1.04 million metric tons for the week ended July 22. Of that, inspections of corn destined for China totaled 489,820 tons. China was also a destination for U.S. wheat, with inspections of wheat destined for China totaling 67,634 tons for the week. In total, wheat inspections totaled 477,964 tons.

AHEAD:

--Archer Daniels Midland will release its second-quarter earnings report before the stock market opens Tuesday.

--The EIA will release its weekly ethanol production and stocks report at 10:30 a.m. ET Wednesday.

--The USDA will release its weekly export sales report at 8:30 a.m. ET Thursday.

Write to Kirk Maltais at kirk.maltais@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

July 26, 2021 14:59 ET (18:59 GMT)

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