SINGAPORE, July 23 (Reuters) - Chicago wheat slid on Thursday, as the market took a breather after climbing to a two-year high in the previous session, although the decline was limited by attacks on grain vessels and port infrastructure in the Black Sea region.

Soybeans firmed, tracking higher crude prices, while corn ticked lower.

FUNDAMENTALS

* The most-active wheat contract on the Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT) Wv1 fell 0.1% to $7.05 a bushel, as of 0018 GMT, having climbed to its highest since May 2024 on Wednesday.

* Soybeans Sv1 rose 0.1% to $12.40-1/4 a bushel and corn Cv1 gave up 0.2% to $4.84 a bushel.

* Concerns over supplies from the Black Sea region have driven wheat prices higher over the past weeks as Russia and Ukraine stepped up attacks on grain ships and ports.

* The Russian Defence Ministry said on Wednesday its forces attacked Ukrainian ports and military infrastructure in the Odesa region.

* Russia has introduced a temporary ban on vessel movements in and out of the port of Novorossiysk between midnight and 5 a.m. because of Ukrainian drone attacks, three grain industry sources said on Wednesday. Novorossiysk is Russia's biggest port by volume and handles up to one third of Russia's grain exports.

* Expectations of lower output are also supporting wheat prices after crop scouts on the first day of an annual three-day tour of North Dakota's hard red spring wheat crop projected an average yield in the southern portion of the state at 46.0 bushels per acre (bpa) on Tuesday evening.

* That figure was 8% below the estimate for the same area last year and just above the five-year average of 45.8 bpa.

* The rally in crude oil prices LCOc1, CLc1 lifted soybeans with increasing use of soyoil in making biodiesel, which competes for a market share with petroleum.

MARKET NEWS

* Oil prices rose to a six-week high on Wednesday as the U.S. and Iran traded strikes, further threatening energy shipping in the Middle East, while U.S. equities were flat ahead of key Big Tech earnings. MKTS/GLOB

DATA/EVENTS (GMT)

0645 France Business Climate Mfg, Overall Jul

1000 UK CBI Business Optimism Q3

1215 EU ECB Financing Rate Jul

1215 EU ECB Deposit Rate Jul

1230 US Initial Jobless Clm 18 Jul, w/e

1400 EU Consumer Confid. Flash Jul