Chicago corn pulls back from 6-month peak, Argentina dryness caps losses

BEIJING, Jan 7 (Reuters) – Chicago corn retreated on Tuesday after rallying to a six-month high in the last session, although a weaker dollar and concerns over dryness in key grower Argentina kept a floor below prices.

Soybeans and wheat also fell, partly weighed down by a disappointing weekly export sales report released by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) last week.

* The most-active corn contract on the Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT) was down 0.6% to $4.55-6/8 a bushel by 0117 GMT.

* The soybean contract was down 0.63% at $9.92 a bushel, while wheat dropped 0.79% to $5.36 a bushel.

* The U.S. dollar hovered near a one-week low versus major peers as traders considered whether President-elect Donald Trump’s tariffs would be less aggressive than promised.

* The USDA on Friday reported wheat export sales of 140,600 metric tons for the week ended Dec. 26, below estimates for 200,000 to 500,000 metric tons, according to a Reuters poll.

* U.S. soybean prices could slump below $9 a bushel, well below farmers’ cost of production and the lowest since 2020, if Trump’s threatened tariffs spark another trade war with China, analysts with Rabobank said.

* Algerian state agency ONAB has issued an international tender to purchase up to 240,000 metric tons of animal-feed corn from Argentina or Brazil, European traders said on Monday.

* Syria is unable to make deals to import fuel, wheat or other key goods due to strict U.S. sanctions and despite many countries, including Gulf Arab states, wanting to do so, Syria’s new trade minister said.

* Indian wheat prices jumped to a record high on Monday due to dwindling supplies amid robust demand from flour mills that are struggling to secure the grain to operate at full capacity, industry officials told Reuters.

* Indonesia plans to impose a quota on wheat imports for animal feed to protect local corn farmers, its senior minister for food affairs said on Monday.

* Commodity funds were net buyers of CBOT corn, wheat, soyoil and soybean futures contracts on Monday, traders said. They were net sellers of soymeal.

* Global stocks rose while the U.S. dollar index dropped on Monday after President-elect Donald Trump denied a newspaper report that his incoming administration would likely pursue a less-aggressive tariff policy than he previously threatened.

0700 UK Halifax House Prices MM, Halifax House Prices YY

0745 France CPI (EU Norm) Prelim YY, CPI (EU Norm) Prelim MM Dec

0745 France CPI Prelim YY NSA, CPI Prelim MM NSA Dec

0930 UK S&P Global PMI: MSC Composite – Output Dec

1000 EU HICP Flash YY Dec

(Reporting by Ella Cao and Mei Mei Chu; Editing by Subhranshu Sahu)