Chicago soybean futures traded slightly weaker on Thursday, after hitting the lowest level in more than a week on export data showing China had canceled soybean purchases for the first time since April.
 

U.S. Agriculture Department data showed the world's top soybean importer canceled purchases of 9,853 metric tons of U.S. soy last week as the bilateral trade war remained unresolved.

Wheat slid for a fourth consecutive session as freshly harvested grain weighed on markets across the northern hemisphere.

The August soybean contract on the Chicago Board Of Trade (CBOT) was down 1/2 cents, or 0.06%, at $8.882 a bushel as of 12:00 p.m. Central Time (1700 GMT). Earlier in the session, it touched the lowest since July 9, at $8.96-1/2 a bushel.

Corn dropped 8-1/2 cents, or 2.7%, to $4.27-1/2 a bushel, while wheat was down 2% at $4.97 a bushel.

Last week grain markets were underpinned by fears that U.S. crops could suffer from prolonged hot and dry weather conditions, and Midwest rains brought some relief on Thursday.

Corn prices have climbed for the last two weeks and hit a five-year high of $4.64-3/4 a bushel on Monday, on concerns about hot weather following rain-plagued planting delays.

The USDA export data also showed Russia and Mexico canceled 171,000 and 32,000 tonnes of soybeans, respectively.

While the reasoning for Mexico's move was not immediately clear, analysts said China's need for soybeans had cooled after a fatal pig disease ravaged the world's largest hog herd.

"It ties into African Swine Fever," said Matt Connelly, grains analyst at The Hightower Report. "There are less pigs to feed, which means they are going to need less soybeans altogether."

Connelly added that U.S.-China trade talks were "sputtering."

Trump on Tuesday said the talks have a long way to go to conclude a trade deal and the United States could impose tariffs on an additional $325 billion worth of Chinese goods if it needed to.

The market is awaiting the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) report on Aug. 12 next month for price direction.