By Faridat Salifu
Soybean prices surged on Monday, November 3, 2025, driving global grain markets higher as renewed trade optimism with China boosted investor confidence.
At the Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT), January soybeans rose by 19 cents to $11.34¼ per bushel, marking one of the strongest closes in recent weeks.
Analysts attributed the rally to expectations that Beijing would finalise major U.S. soybean purchases this week, following reports of seven cargoes traded last week.
“It was a very strong close Monday in soybeans,” said Jamey Kohake, senior risk manager with Pinion. “Corn and wheat followed along on spillover strength. China is still the reason.”
December corn gained 2¾ cents to $4.34¼ per bushel, while December CBOT wheat added 9½ cents to $5.43½ per bushel.
Kansas City wheat rose 7¼ cents to $5.31¾, though Minneapolis wheat edged down ¼ cent to $5.22¼ per bushel.
Karl Setzer, partner at Consus Ag Consulting, said early-week trading saw “light new-month buying” supported by easing trade tensions and slowing U.S. harvest activity.
“Basis values firmed last week on slow deliveries and added demand, putting more pressure on domestic processing margins,” Setzer added.
Livestock futures also strengthened, with December live cattle climbing $2.52 to $236.52 per hundredweight and January feeder cattle gaining $4.62 to $336.52 per hundredweight.
Crude oil prices rose slightly to $61.05 per barrel, while equities saw mixed results as the S&P 500 Index added 10.01 points and the Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped 253.61 points.
The U.S. Dollar Index weakened by 241.57 points at the close of trade.