SINGAPORE, Oct 19 (Reuters) - Chicago soybean futures climbed on Thursday to a three-week high, with strong demand from U.S. oilseed processors and a drought in rival exporter Brazil underpinning the market.
Wheat and corn gained more ground.
FUNDAMENTALS
* The most-active soybean contract on the Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT) rose 0.1% to $13.12-1/4 a bushel, as of 0028 GMT, after hitting its highest since Sept. 27 at $13.15 a bushel earlier in the session.
* Wheat added 0.1% to $5.81 a bushel and corn gained 0.1% at $4.92-1/4 a bushel.
* Soybean futures are being supported by strong U.S. local demand and on news that U.S. exporters had sold 132,000 metric tons of soybeans to China for the 2023-2024 marketing year.
* A severe drought in Brazil, the world's biggest soybean exporter, is providing further support to prices.
* The Amazon River fell to its lowest level in over a century on Monday at the heart of the Brazilian rainforest as a record drought upends the lives of hundreds of thousands of people and damages the jungle ecosystem.
* The drought in the Amazon is forcing Brazilian grain exporters to divert a small number of export cargoes to southern port terminals instead of northern ports, grain exporters group Anec said on Wednesday.
* In news, Russia's EPT grain export company has entered into a contract with the China Chengtong state corporation to supply 70 million tons of Russian grains, legumes and oilseeds to China, EPT said on Wednesday.
* Commodity funds were net buyers of CBOT soybean, soymeal, corn and wheat futures contracts on Wednesday and net sellers of soyoil futures, traders said.
MARKET NEWS
* Wall Street stocks tumbled and crude prices surged on Wednesday as escalating Middle East turmoil prompted a broad sell-off and stoked oil supply concerns.
DATA/EVENTS (GMT) 0645 France Business Climate Mfg, Overall Oct 1230 US Initial Jobless Clm Weekly 1230 US Philly Fed Business Indx Oct 1400 US Existing Home Sales Sept (Reporting by Naveen Thukral; Editing by Subhranshu Sahu)
