GRAINS-Corn, soy, wheat fall as dollar gains, export sales disappoint

(Updates with U.S. trading)

By Renee Hickman

CHICAGO, Dec 12 (Reuters) - Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT) corn, soybean and wheat futures all fell back on Thursday on a stronger dollar following rate cuts by the European Central Bank, technical trading and slower-than-anticipated weekly exports, according to analysts.

The dollar rose versus the euro, making U.S. exports less competitive, as the European Central Bank cut

interest rates

for the fourth time this year and U.S.

consumer prices

posted the biggest rise in seven months.

Data released

by the U.S. Department of Agriculture on Thursday morning showed net corn export sales at 946,900 metric tons, below analyst forecasts for at least 1.1 million tons in a

Reuters poll

.

Soybean sales of 1,173,800 metric tons were also below trade estimates, although the USDA later announced another 334,000 tons of

daily sales

to undisclosed buyers.

The most-active wheat contract on the Chicago Board of Trade was down 5-3/4 cents at $5.57-1/2 a bushel at 12:50 p.m. CST (1850 GMT).

CBOT corn fell 4-3/4 cents to $4.43-1/2 a bushel and soybeans lost 1/4 cent to $9.95-1/4 a bushel.

Profit-taking following prior-session gains and technical selling added pressure, said Arlan Suderman, chief commodities economist at StoneX.

March corn futures hit overhead technical resistance at the 200-day moving average, while January soybeans failed to break through their 100-day moving average, unable to gain momentum with a large projected Brazilian crop, he added.

Brazilian crop agency Conab on Thursday nudged up its forecast of 2024/25 soybean production to a new record.

Wheat drew support from market chatter that a planned Russian export quota for the second half of the season may be reduced.

Cheap supplies from Argentina and Australia gave the wheat market little reason to sustain a rally.

"When you get these other headwinds of a stronger dollar and corn turning lower, the whole complex just kind of gave in and turned lower together," Suderman said. (Reporting by Renee Hickman in Chicago; Additional reporting by Gus Trompiz in Paris and Peter Hobson in Canberra; Editing by Andrea Ricci)