Soybeans Post Strength on Friday

Market Performance - Soybeans experienced gains of 4 to 5 cents across most contracts, with March down 4 ¾ cents for the week. The national average Cash Bean price increased by 5 1/4 cents to $9.87 1/4 [1] - Soymeal futures rose by 80 cents to $2.40 higher, despite a decline of $13.70 in March this week. Soy Oil futures decreased by 18 to 36 points on Friday, but the weekly move was 292 points higher [1] Commitment of Traders Report - The weekly Commitment of Traders report indicated that spec traders in soybean futures and options reduced their net long positions by 44,756 contracts, bringing the total to 12,961 contracts as of January 13 [2] Export Sales and Crop Estimates - Total soybean commitments reached 30.637 million metric tons (MMT) as of January 8, which is 25% lower than the same period in 2025, representing 71% of the USDA projection and 15 percentage points behind the normal pace. Actual accumulated shipments were 17.984 MMT, or 42% of USDA's estimate, significantly trailing the 60% average pace [3] - Safras updated their Brazilian crop estimates, raising the projection by 0.52 MMT to 179.28 MMT [3]