* Most-active CBOT corn futures near two-week high
* Ample global supplies limit corn market gains
* Soybean futures backpedal from early advances
CHICAGO, Feb 27 (Reuters) - Chicago Board of Trade corn futures rose for a second consecutive session on Tuesday, extending a slight recovery from their lowest levels in more than three years.
Soybean futures finished lower after shrugging off earlier gains.
Bargain buyers stepped in to the corn market as low prices increased some demand from end users, traders said. The front-month contract on Monday bounced after falling below $4 per bushel to its lowest level since November 2020.
Technical buying and short covering helped extend the rebound, traders said, with speculators holding large short positions or bets that prices will fall.
"It's a little bit of evening up," said Don Roose, president of brokerage U.S. Commodities.
Ample global corn supplies limited advances, though, as the U.S. faces intensified competition for grain and soy export sales on the global market, analysts said.
Nearby CBOT March corn ended up 1-1/4 cents at $4.08-1/4 a bushel. Most-active May corn closed 2 cents higher at $4.23-1/2 per bushel and reached its highest price since Nov. 14 at $4.26-1/2.
CBOT wheat also advanced, with the May contract closing 9-1/2 cents higher at $5.84-1/4 per bushel. Most-active May soybeans fell 4-1/2 cents to $11.40-3/4 after dropping on Monday to the lowest price since November 2020 at $11.33-1/2.
Brokers said some market participants liquidated March contracts ahead of first notice day on Thursday and were also watching for signs that prices are bottoming out.
"If you can get a 3-4 day rally out of it, then it's more convincing that's the low," Roose said.
In global demand, exporters sold 123,000 metric tons of U.S. soybeans to unknown destinations, the U.S. Department of Agriculture said. Still, the United States faces stiff competition from Brazil for export sales to China, the world's biggest soy importer.
Chinese importers are believed to have purchased a substantial volume of animal feed corn from Ukraine in the past week, European traders said.
"U.S. origins lack competitiveness on the international stage, which naturally limits the potential for a rebound," consultancy Agritel said. (Reporting by Tom Polansek in Chicago. Additional reporting by Gus Trompiz in Paris and Naveen Thukral in Singapore; Editing by Jonathan Oatis and Matthew Lewis)
