Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Board of Trade wheat futures galloped to another 14-year high on Thursday as Russia’s invasion of Ukraine increasingly fanned fears of massive disruptions to grain exports from the Black Sea region.
Wheat and corn futures advanced by their daily trading limits during a volatile session, though the corn market later trimmed its gains.
The week-old war has closed Ukrainian ports and prompted unprecedented Western financial sanctions against Russia, leaving crop buyers rushing to seek alternative supply sources.
Russia and Ukraine account for about 29 per cent of global wheat exports, 19 per cent of corn exports and 80 per cent of exports of sunflower oil, which competes with soyoil.
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U.S. grains: Wheat futures rise on supply snags in top-exporter Russia
U.S. wheat futures closed higher on Thursday on concerns over the limited availability of supplies for export in Russia, analysts said.
Demand for American corn perked up as the U.S. Department of Agriculture said exporters sold 337,000 tonnes to unknown destinations for delivery in the 2021-22 marketing year.
Some traders predict the Ukraine conflict could shift up to 300 million bushels of additional demand to the United States, said Karl Setzer, commodity risk analyst for AgriVisor.
“If correct, this will drop U.S. ending stocks to a point where rationing would be needed,” he said.
CBOT May, July and September wheat futures ended up by the expanded 75-cent limit (all figures US$). The most-active May contract was at $11.34 a bushel, its highest level since March 2008. The market set a high of $13.49-1/2 in February 2008.
Front-month March wheat, which is trading without limits in thin volume, closed up a staggering $2.30-1/2 at $12.89.
Most-active CBOT corn ended up 22-3/4 cents at $7.47-3/4 a bushel after rising the 35-cent limit to $7.60, its highest level since 2012. The front-month contract rose as high as $7.78-1/2. In 2012, the market reached a record $8.49.
Soybeans finished 4-3/4 cents higher at $16.67-3/4 a bushel. Soyoil ended 1.06 cent weaker at 74.81 cents/lb., after setting a record high of 77.33.
Facing surging prices, U.S. President Joe Biden’s administration is studying waiving biofuel blending mandates, two sources familiar with the matter said.
— Reporting for Reuters by Tom Polansek in Chicago, Gus Trompiz in Paris and Naveen Thukral in Singapore.
