Soybeans Last week was very volatile. Basis in Brazil had been rising slowly in the past few months. Demand was gradually increasing bids, although this was essentially just on the spot as there was a plentiful supply of soybeans globally. While the drought in Argentina became a concern by early February, no one considered it to be a significant issue. Nevertheless, the spot market kept moving with good demand. Basis gradually and consistently rose, both FOB and CNF in China, but without great volatility since the supply/demand balance was comfortable. However, the situation slowly tightened as the Argentine crop became increasingly drier with analysts reducing production estimates.

Argentina's basis grew more than Brazil’s, bring...