Chicago | Reuters — Chicago wheat futures turned higher Wednesday, recouping some of their steep losses from the previous session, as investor concerns that the Omicron coronavirus variant would derail the global economy began to ease.
Corn and soybeans also regained ground on end-user buying, traders said, following hopes of export buyers looking for deals as soymeal futures led the soy complex higher on the day.
“You still have (soybean) crush margins that are in the $2-$2.50 per bushel range, and there’s talk that China has popped back into the market looking for more soybeans because of this price break,” said Don Roose, president of agricultural broker U.S. Commodities (all figures US$).
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Reuters could not immediately confirm any new Chinese offers for U.S. soybeans.
But futures paired gains late in the session, after a government official announced that the first U.S. case of the Omicron variant of COVID-19 has been detected in California.
The most-active wheat contract on the Chicago Board Of Trade (CBOT) settled up 3-1/4 cents at $7.90-1/2 a bushel. Corn settled up four cents at $5.71-1/2 a bushel.
CBOT soybeans closed the day up 11 cents at $12.28-1/4 a bushel, while most-active January soymeal closed $7.30 higher at $349.10 per ton.
Grain markets have been volatile in recent days, particularly wheat futures, traders said.
Wheat has been seen as susceptible to liquidation after investment funds increased long positions last month during a rally to nine-year highs in Chicago and record peaks on Euronext, the European benchmark.
Commodity funds were net sellers of CBOT wheat, corn, soybean and soyoil futures contracts on Tuesday, traders said. Funds were estimated to be net even in soymeal futures.
Wheat markets have soared in recent weeks as the possibility of more Russian export restrictions and the risk of rain damage to Australia’s crop fanned fears of tight milling wheat supplies.
“The technicals in the market have broken down to the down side, and that’s the signal that the funds are in a liquidating mode,” Roose said.
Commodity traders said they were keeping a close eye on U.S. monetary policy moves — and whether that might further roil the markets — after Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said the risk of persistent inflation has risen.
— P.J. Huffstutter reports on agriculture and agribusiness for Reuters from Chicago; additional reporting by Gus Trompiz in Paris and Naveen Thukral in Singapore.
