The Department of Agriculture reported that soybean export sales totaled just 283,100 metric tons for the 2025/26 and 2026/27 marketing years. This figure landed well below the floor of analyst estimates, which had anticipated sales reaching as high as 1.1 million tons. Despite the overall lag in volume, China remained the primary destination for the week’s soybean commitments.

Divergent Demand Across Grains

In contrast to the sluggish soybean market, corn and wheat exports showed robust momentum, both exceeding the top end of professional forecasts. Corn sales reached 2.13 million tons, driven largely by significant interest from Asian markets. Wheat sales also remained strong, totaling 501,900 tons for the period.

Specific purchasing activity for the week included:

• Japan led corn imports with 676,600 tons.
• The Philippines emerged as the top buyer for U.S. wheat.
• Egypt secured an additional 108,000 tons of soybeans in a separate transaction for the 2025/26 marketing year.

The mixed export data preceded a modest lift in the commodities market. In pre-market trading on Thursday, CBOT grain futures moved higher, with soybeans gaining 1% despite the disappointing weekly sales total, while corn and wheat rose 0.4% and 0.5%, respectively.