US soybean crush volumes dropped more than expected in the month of June to the lowest level since September 2017, according to the National Oilseed Processors Association (NOPA)’s latest report.

Analysts say the third consecutive monthly decline followed downtime at oilseed crushers affected by wet spring conditions across central US.

NOPA, which represents producers crushing 95% of US-grown output of soybeans, said 149m bushels were processed in June - down 4% from the May figure of 155m bushels.

On a daily adjusted basis, the output was 4.96m bushels per day, off from 4.99m bushels a day in May.

’Disappointing’

Analysts at Benson Quinn Commodities described the estimate as "disappointing", noting "the trade, albeit using a wide range of guesses, was looking for roughly 154m bushels."

The US level of soybean stocks was 1.535bn bushels, at the lowest level since the end of December 2018, although broadly near market expectations.

The unexpected drop in crushing was attributed to downtime caused by flooding at several processors during what has been an exceptionally wet spring in the US.

In June 2018, NOPA reported there had been a crush of 159m bushels, an all-time high for that month of the year.