Chicago/Reuters – U.S. wheat futures rose about one per cent on Thursday, supported by short-covering and a setback in the dollar, which tends to make U.S. grains more attractive to those holding other currencies, traders said.
Corn futures edged higher after a seesaw trade while soybeans declined on ideas of improving crop prospects in South America.
“Currency … is the key factor in markets today rather than anything else,” said Kaname Gokon at Okato Shoji brokerage in Tokyo.
The dollar was broadly lower on Thursday, sliding to a two-week low against the yen.
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Chicago Board of Trade March wheat settled up 3-1/4 cents at $4.04-3/4 per bushel. March corn ended up 1-1/2 cents at $3.49-3/4 a bushel. March soybeans fell 3-3/4 cents at $10.12-3/4 a bushel.
Many traders are on vacation between the Christmas and New Years Day holidays, and this week’s choppy price action has kept others on the sidelines.
“My phone is dead quiet. People are fine with the three-day weekend coming, and they don’t want to do (anything),” said Jack Scoville with the Price Futures Group in Chicago.
CBOT wheat futures showed little reaction after top importer Egypt bought 235,000 tonnes of wheat from Russia and Ukraine in an international tender. No U.S. wheat was offered.
But the market drew light support from news that Morocco’s state grains agency, ONICL, announced tenders to buy 363,636 tonnes of European Union soft wheat and 363,636 tonnes of U.S. soft wheat under preferential-tariff import quotas.
ONICL said in a statement it was also seeking to buy 327,273 tonnes of U.S. durum under the same agreement. Worries about dry conditions in South America’s corn and soy regions seemed to ease this week.
“It’s still very early in the Argentine growing season, but conditions there remain favorable for 90 per cent of the belt, providing little fodder for the bulls,” INTL FCStone commodities economist Arlan Suderman wrote in a client note.
“Soybeans are marching closer to maturity in Brazil, limiting the potential adverse impact of a turn toward drier weather,” Suderman added.
