Can Soybeans Remain in the Teens?
I asked if the soybean rally was over in a June 18, 2026, Barchart article, where I concluded with the following:
The weather over the coming weeks and months during the 2026 growing season is critical for the path of least resistance of CBOT soybean and soybean product futures. However, the situation in the Middle East adds complexities beyond the weather and crop to the soybean market, which could cause sudden price volatility.
Nearby soybean futures were trading at $11.3325 per bushel on June 17, 2026, with the SOYB ETF at $24.43 per share. Soybean futures were higher, in the low teens, in September 2026 as the 2026 harvest approaches.
Soybeans rally
Soybean futures have made higher lows and higher highs throughout 2026.
The daily year-to-date continuous CBOT soybean futures chart shows that after closing 2025 at $10.4750 per bushel, the oilseed futures rallied 26.4% to a high of $13.2400 on September 2. Above $13 per bushel on September 9, bean futures were not far below the recent high.
Soybean products move higher
Soybean meal and soybean oil are soybean products. The beans are crushed into solids and liquids.
The continuous soybean meal chart shows that it rose 19.5% from $299.40 at the end of 2025 to a high of $357.70 per ton on May 15. At $344.80 per ton on September 9, bean meal was trading near the top end of the 2026 price range. Soybean meal is a primary ingredient in animal feeds.
The continuous soybean oil chart shows that it rose 14.4% from 48.56 cents at the end of 2025 to a high of 79.69 cents per pound on June 1. At 70.32 cents on September 9, the bean oil was much closer to the 2026 high than this year’s low. Soybean oil is a primary ingredient in many foods, salad dressings, and, most importantly this year, biodiesel.
Higher energy prices support soybean prices. Soybeans are food and fuel
Soybeans are food and fuel, and in 2026, the situation in the Middle East, sanctions on Russia, and higher crude oil and oil product prices have driven soybean and soybean oil futures higher.
Biodiesel is an alternative for diesel fuel. Heating oil futures are a proxy for all medium distillates, including jet and diesel fuels.
The continuous heating oil chart shows that it rose 125.7% from $2.1215 at the end of 2025 to a high of $4.7879 per gallon wholesale on September 9. Heating oil futures hit a 2026 high on September 9, an all-time high.
The rise in distillate fuel prices has pushed soybean prices higher. As the situation in the Middle East remains highly turbulent, a further rise in oil product prices could push the beans into the teens.
Levels to watch in the soybean futures market
Soybean futures have made higher lows and higher highs since December 2024, when the continuous contract bottomed at $9.47 per bushel.
The monthly chart shows that the current upside target and technical resistance level is at the November 2023 high of $13.9850 per bushel. A break above that level could threaten a test of the 2022 and 2012 highs at over $17.50 per bushel. Technical support is currently at the June 2026 low of $11.1025 per bushel.
If beans are heading higher in the teens, the SOYB ETF could deliver positive returns
The most direct route for investment for a risk position in soybeans is the CME’s CBOT soybean futures and options. Each soybean futures contract contains 5,000 bushels. At $13.12 per bushel, the contract value is $65,600. The futures are leveraged instruments that require specialized trading accounts. The CBOT’s original margin requirement for soybeans is $2,530 per contract or 3.86% of the contract value. If equity moves below $2,300, the exchange requires maintenance margin payments. Soybean price volatility determines margin levels. If volatility increases, margin requirements rise.
The Teucrium Soybean ETF (SOYB) lets market participants gain soybean exposure without the leverage or account requirements of the futures market. At $27.77 per share, SOYB had $67.324 million in assets under management. SOYB trades an average of more than 89,000 shares per day and charges a 0.63% management fee. SOYB owns a portfolio of three actively traded CBOT soybean futures contracts, excluding the nearby contract to minimize roll risks. Since the nearby contract attracts the most speculative activity, it tends to experience the highest price volatility. Therefore, SOYB often underperforms nearby soybean futures on the upside and outperforms the futures during price declines.
The most recent rally in nearby CBOT soybean futures took the continuous contract 13.62% higher, from $11.6525 on August 11 to $13.2400 per bushel on September 2.
Over the same period, the SOYB ETF rose 11.85% from $24.89 to $27.84 per share, slightly underperforming the nearby futures.
Time will tell if beans remain in the teens. If distillate fuel prices remain high over the coming weeks and months, the odds of higher soybean futures prices will rise.
On the date of publication, Andrew Hecht did not have (either directly or indirectly) positions in any of the securities mentioned in this article. All information and data in this article is solely for informational purposes. For more information please view the Barchart Disclosure Policy here.