Grains, Soy Called to Open Higher as Hot, Dry Weather Persists

What follows are opening calls for U.S. grain and oilseed markets, which open at 5 p.m. on the Chicago Board of Trade.

-- Corn futures may open 1 cent to 3 cents higher per bushel as hot, dry weather forecast for the western Corn Belt hurts U.S. crops, Sterling Smith, an analyst at Citibank Global Markets, said in an e-mail.

-- Soybean futures may open 2 cents to 3 cents a bushel higher on signs that hot, dry weather may curb yields further as plants enter critical growth stages, Smith said. Soybean-oil futures may open 0.1 cent to 0.2 cent a pound higher, and soybean-meal futures may open $1.50 to $3.50 higher per 2,000 pounds.

-- Wheat futures may open steady to 1 cent higher as drought curbs production in Russia and Ukraine, Smith said.

To contact the reporter on this story: Tony C. Dreibus in Chicago at tdreibus@bloomberg.net.

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Steve Stroth at sstroth@bloomberg.net.