* Spot soybeans edge lower after 6 sessions of gains
* Corn, wheat decline in profit-taking setback
* All three remain on pace for weekly gains
* CBOT futures market closed on Monday for Memorial Day
(Rewrites throughout, updates prices, changes byline, changes
dateline from AMSTERDAM/SYDNEY)
By Karl Plume
CHICAGO, May 24 (Reuters) - U.S. soybean futures slipped
lower on Friday for the first time in seven sessions and corn
eased after two days of gains as investors squared ahead the
long Memorial Day holiday weekend.
Wheat prices declined in a profit-taking setback following a
2 percent surge a day earlier and as rains forecast for the
southern Plains wheat belt this weekend could boost yields
slightly in the nearly mature crop.
Volatile price moves on Thursday left some traders weary so
trading volume was light. Chicago Board of Trade futures markets
will be closed on Monday.
"We have a three-day weekend in front of us and there's a
bit of fatigue after Thursday's price action, the big rejection
of prices on soybeans. That might have shocked a few traders and
moved them to the sidelines today," said Rich Nelson, chief
strategist with Allendale Inc.
He was referring to an uncommonly wide trading range of
nearly 60 cents a day earlier and a steep late-session spike
followed by a rapid retreat. The whipsaw price moves also
spilled over to corn and wheat.
CBOT July soybeans fell 5-1/4 cents, or 0.4 percent,
to $14.94-1/4 per bushel by 10:24 a.m. CDT (1524 GMT),
encountering chart resistance near the $15.00 level. New-crop
contracts edged higher on short covering, with November up
6-1/4 cents, or 0.5 percent, at $12.49-1/4.
Soybeans were on course for a fourth straight weekly
advance, adding more than 3 percent in the week.
CBOT July corn dipped 1 cent to $6.61 a bushel but
remained on pace for a second consecutive weekly gain of more
than 1 percent.
CBOT July wheat shed 4 cents, or 0.6 percent, to
$6.99-1/4 a bushel but was poised for a 2 percent weekly gain,
its first in three weeks.
(Editing by Sofina Mirza-Reid)
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