Investing.com - U.S. soybean and corn futures declined for the second consecutive session on Monday, amid speculation beneficial weather in the U.S. Midwest will speed up the pace of the harvest.
On the Chicago Mercantile Exchange, US soybeans for January delivery fell 6.47 cents, or 0.66%, to trade at $9.7613 a bushel during U.S. morning hours.
Prices of the oilseed tumbled 16.6 cents, or 1.67%, on Friday to end at $9.8320 a bushel.
Updated weather forecasting models called for mostly dry conditions across the Midwest over the next 10 days, which should allow farmers to accelerate the pace of the harvest following rain delays.
According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, approximately 53% of the U.S. soy harvest was completed as of October 18, compared to the five-year average of 66% for this time of year.
The agency is scheduled to release its crop progress report later in the session.
Meanwhile, US corn for December delivery traded at $3.4963 a bushel, down 2.58 cents, or 0.73%.
Corn futures slumped 6.6 cents, or 1.88%, on Friday to settle at $3.5300.
Nearly 31% of the U.S. corn harvest was completed as of last week, below the five-year average of 53% for this time of year, according to the USDA.
Elsewhere on the CBOT, US wheat for December delivery lost 2.58 cents, or 0.5%, to trade at $5.1463 a bushel.
Prices of the grain dropped 9.0 cents, or 1.71%, on Friday to end at $5.1760.
Corn is the biggest U.S. crop, followed by soybeans, government figures show. Wheat was fourth, behind hay.