CANBERRA, Sept 6 (Reuters) - Chicago soybean and corn prices rose on Wednesday after a U.S. government report showed that dry weather had damaged crops more than most analysts had expected, raising supply concerns.
Wheat prices also rose as low rainfall in major exporters - Australia, Canada and Argentina - raised the threat of a tighter market in coming months.
FUNDAMENTALS
* Most-active Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT) soybean futures were up 0.6% at $13.73-3/4 a bushel at 0107 GMT. CBOT corn rose 0.3% to $4.87-1/4 a bushel and wheat was 0.2% higher at $6.00-1/4 a bushel.
* The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) in a weekly crop progress report rated 53% of the U.S. soybean crop as "good to excellent", down 5% from a week ago and below the 55% expected on average by 11 analysts surveyed by Reuters.
* The USDA rated 53% of the U.S. corn crop as "good to excellent", down 3% from last week and beneath analysts' expectations of 54%.
* The "good to excellent" ratings for both crops are the lowest for this time of year since 2012, a historic drought year. They renew concerns about yields, particularly for soybeans, which are at a critical phase of development.
* The United States is the world's No. 2 exporter of corn and soybeans.
* Conditions in the U.S. Midwest are forecast milder and wetter, which should limit additional crop losses but not turn back damage already done, said StoneX analyst Arlan Suderman.
* Also supporting soybeans was USDA data showing that exporters sold 251,000 metric tons of U.S. beans to unknown destinations, the latest in a string of sales that demonstrate strong demand.
* Outside the United States, China's weather bureau said heavy rain could delay grain ripening and harvesting in the northeastern Heilongjiang province, the country's top producer of soybeans and corn.
* In more positive supply news, Argentina will attempt to spur soybean exports by allowing shippers to use foreign currency income to buy beans.
* In the wheat market, the USDA said the U.S. harvest was 74% complete as of Sunday, ahead of the average trade estimate of 71%, but lagging the five-year average of 77%.
* While the longer supply outlook may be tighter, wheat prices have been under pressure from cheap Russian exports.
* Russian consultancy Sovecon raised its forecast for Russian exports to 48.6 million metric tons in the 2023/24 season from its previous estimate of 48.1 million tons.
* Ukrainian agricultural exports, meanwhile, rose 16% month-on-month in August to 4.3 million tons, the UCAB agricultural business association said, despite the failure of a Black Sea shipping corridor that Turkey is trying to revive.
* Ukraine's agriculture ministry said the country's 2024 winter wheat area was likely to rise to 4.3 million hectares from around 4.1 million hectares in 2023.
* Soft wheat exports from the European Union so far in the 2023/24 season that started in July had reached 5.03 million metric tons by Sept. 3, down 32% from 7.39 million a year earlier, European Commission data showed.
MARKETS NEWS
World stock indexes eased and benchmark 10-year Treasury yields rose to their highest in more than a week on Tuesday as oil prices jumped and investors weighed prospects for further U.S. interest rate hikes.
(Reporting by Peter Hobson; Editing by Sherry Jacob-Phillips)
