GRAINS-Soybeans down for third session on LatAm rains; wheat, corn ease

SINGAPORE, Jan 20 (Reuters) - Chicago soybean futures slid more than 1% on Wednesday to their lowest in a week as rains across South America lifted crop prospects, boosting expectations of higher world supply.

Wheat and corn prices fell.

FUNDAMENTALS

* The Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT) most-active soybean contract fell 1.4% to $13.67-1/4 a bushel, as of 0120 GMT, having dropped to lowest since Jan. 12 at $13.65 a bushel earlier in the session. The contract was on track for a third straight session of fall.

* Wheat fell 1.2% to $6.64-1/4 a bushel and corn lost 0.9% to $5.21-1/4 a bushel.

* Rains across much of Brazil's growing regions bolstered parched crops, as the country slowly begins its soybean harvest, which could ease supply worries.

* Ukrainian grain traders said on Tuesday they saw no grounds to restrict corn exports for the 2020/21 season, a move requested by animal feed and meat producers to avoid higher feed prices.

* Ukraine's economy ministry and agricultural unions will decide on Jan. 25 whether to limit corn exports for the 2020/21 marketing season to 22 million tonnes.

* Strong demand for agricultural products is expected to provide a floor under the markets.

* The U.S. Department of Agriculture reported private U.S. corn sales totalling 128,000 tonnes to Japan and 100,000 tonnes to Israel, both for shipment in the 2020/21 marketing year.

* Top importer China bought a record 11.3 million tonnes of imported corn last year, according to General Administration of Customs data.

* Wheat, too, benefited from China's increased imports, with a record 8.38 million tonnes of wheat imported in 2020.

* The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency on Tuesday granted three waivers to oil refiners that exempt them from U.S. biofuel blending obligations, a last-minute move before President Donald Trump leaves office on Wednesday.

* Commodity funds were net sellers of CBOT corn, soybean, soymeal, wheat and soyoil futures contracts on Tuesday, traders said.

MARKET NEWS

* Investors in Asian markets were poised for gains on Wednesday after Wall Street indexes rose on the back of U.S. Treasury Secretary nominee Janet Yellen's push for a sizable fiscal relief package in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

DATA/EVENTS (GMT) 0700 UK CPI YY Dec 1000 EU HICP Final MM, YY Dec Bank of Japan holds Monetary Policy Meeting to Jan. 21 (Reporting by Naveen Thukral; Editing by Subhranshu Sahu)

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