Soybean futures close lower as markets decouple from energy strength.

Soybean futures closed moderately lower, fading during the day session despite a continued rally in crude oil. The market is showing signs of decoupling from energy markets and trading more on its own fundamentals, though soybean oil did manage to close near the highs of the day. The recent prospective plantings report showed 84.7 million acres, falling short of the 85.6 million trade expectation. However, surging fertilizer prices are sparking debate that some intended corn acres could shift back to soybeans. Meanwhile, weekly export sales came in at 353,000 metric tons, landing at the lower end of the 300,000 to 700,000 metric ton expectation range.