Commodities

Grain and soybean futures closed slightly lower Tuesday on the Chicago Board of Trade.

Sellers finally gained the upper hand in a day of choppy trading in advance of the Agriculture Department’s October crop production report, due out after the close on Thursday, said Victor Lespinasse, a trader for Dean Witter Reynolds.

Private crop forecaster Conrad Leslie issued his corn and soybean production estimates after the close on Tuesday, and Lespinasse called the number bearish.