Chicago | Reuters — Chicago wheat and soybean futures settled slightly lower on Wednesday as forecasts for cooler weather lifted expectations for better crop conditions after this week’s hot spell, though corn edged higher.
Markets had been falling since Monday’s U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) weekly crop progress report, which showed conditions for soy and corn improved from the previous week.
Traders were still monitoring temperatures, which were set to exceed 90 F (32 C) in much of the Midwest for a few days before easing.
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U.S. wheat futures closed higher on Thursday on concerns over the limited availability of supplies for export in Russia, analysts said.
“There’s just uncertainty,” said Joe Aiello, senior agriculture adviser with Roach Agriculture Marketing. He added that until the USDA releases its revised acreage report on Aug. 12, the weekly crop progress reports may not have as much impact as they normally do.
The September corn futures contract on the Chicago Board Of Trade (CBOT) settled up 3/4 cents, or 0.1 per cent, at $4.36 a bushel, nearing a five-year high of $4.36-1/4 a bushel (all figures US$).
CBOT August soybeans settled down 5-1/4 cents, or 0.7 per cent, at $8.82-1/2 a bushel, after rising earlier in the day.
CBOT September wheat settled down two cents, or 0.4 per cent, to $5.05-1/2 a bushel.
“Wheat is really just a follower at this point,” said Aiello. “There is an abundance mixed with nicer weather in Russia and the Black Sea region that won’t damage crops.”
Egypt’s state grain buyer, the General Authority for Supply Commodities (GASC), said it bought 60,000 tonnes of Russian wheat in a tender on Wednesday.
As in recent Egyptian tenders, wheat from Black Sea suppliers Ukraine, Russia and Romania dominated the bidding, with no U.S. or western European wheat offered.
— Reporting for Reuters by Barbara Smith in Chicago; additional reporting by Gus Trompiz in Paris and Naveen Thukral in Singapore.
