Wheat down 5-7 cents, corn steady-up 1 cent, soy up 6-7 cents

Following are U.S. expectations for the resumption of grain and soy complex trading at the Chicago Board of Trade at 8:30 a.m. CDT (1330 GMT) on Thursday:

WHEAT - Down 5 to 7 cents per bushel

* Wheat futures head lower in range-bound trade, anchored by welcome rains in the U.S. Plains wheat belt and strong export competition from Russian wheat supplies. The benchmark CBOT December (WZ24) wheat contract stayed inside of Wednesday's trading range in early moves.

* The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) reported export sales of U.S. wheat in the week ended Oct. 24 at 411,400 metric tons, in line with trade expectations for 300,000 to 600,000 tons.

* Traders await the results of an international wheat purchase tender set by Algeria's state grains agency that could provide a clearer view of the impact of Russia’s unofficial minimum wheat export price. Algeria is a vital customer for wheat from the European Union, but Russian and other Black Sea region exporters have been expanding in the Algerian market.

* CBOT December soft red winter wheat (WZ24) was last down 5-1/2 cents at $5.67-3/4 per bushel. K.C. December hard red winter wheat (KWZ24) was last down 6-3/4 cents at $5.69 a bushel and Minneapolis December spring wheat (MWEZ24) was last down 5 cents at $6.04 a bushel.

CORN - Steady to up 1 cent per bushel

* Corn futures stabilize as support from strength in soybean futures offsets pressure from declines in wheat. Robust export demand for ample U.S. corn supplies adds support.

* The CBOT December corn contract (CZ24) dipped below chart support at its 50-day moving average near $4.11 before paring losses.

* The USDA reported export sales of U.S. corn in the week ended Oct. 24 at 2,341,700 metric tons, in line with trade expectations for 1,800,000 to 3,500,000 tons.

* CBOT December corn (CZ24) last traded unchanged at $4.11-1/2 per bushel.

SOYBEANS - Up 6 to 7 cents per bushel

* Soybean futures head higher for a second session on bargain buying one day after the most-active January (SF25) contract hit a two-month low, and on strength in soyoil (BOZ24) and crude oil CL1! futures. Soyoil sometimes follows crude oil due to its role as a feed stock for biodiesel fuel.

* Improved crop weather in top global soy producer Brazil limits rallies.

* Brisk export demand lends support. The USDA reported export sales of U.S. soybeans in the week ended Oct. 24 at 2,273,300 metric tons, in line with trade expectations for 1,600,000 to 2,800,000 tons.

* Separately, under its daily reporting rules, the USDA confirmed private sales of 150,000 metric tons of U.S. soymeal to undisclosed destinations for delivery in the 2024/25 marketing year that began Oct. 1.

* The CBOT reported 97 deliveries against the November soybean futures contract (SX24) on first notice day, with no strong commercial stoppers.

* CBOT January soybeans (SF25) were last up 6-1/4 cents at $9.97-1/2 per bushel.