Wheat climbs 3% in rally from one-month lows; soy, corn sag
U.S. wheat futures surged on Tuesday after a nine-session decline, driven by bargain buying and concerns over Russia’s crop. CBOT soybean and corn futures dipped ahead of USDA reports. CBOT July wheat rose 18-1/2 cents to $6.26 per bushel, bouncing from a low since May 3. Russian frosts impacted winter grains, boosting wheat prices. Egypt’s large wheat purchase added support. Corn and soybean crops in the U.S. are off to a strong start.
CHICAGO, June 11 (Reuters) – U.S. wheat futures rallied on Tuesday after a nine-session slide, with the benchmark Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT) July wheat contract lifted by bargain buying and renewed worries about crops in top global exporter Russia, brokers said.
CBOT soybean and corn futures declined as market players awaited fresh direction from monthly crop supply/demand reports due on Wednesday from the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
As of 12:58 p.m. CDT (1758 GMT), CBOT July wheat was up 18-1/2 cents at $6.26 per bushel, bouncing after a dip to $6.05-1/2, the contract’s lowest since May 3. Technical traders noted chart support at the contract’s 100-day moving average near $6.04.
CBOT July soybeans were down 9 cents at $11.79-1/4 a bushel and July corn was down 1-1/4 cents at $4.50-1/2 a bushel.
Wheat jumped after the head of Russia’s grain union said frosts in Russia have affected between 15% and 30% of winter grains, varying by region, a much higher figure than suggested by the agriculture ministry.
Benchmark CBOT wheat had fallen more than $1 a bushel since May 28, pressured by the start of the Northern Hemisphere winter wheat harvest and a temporary ban on imports by major buyer Turkey.
Some saw the market as over-sold and due for a bounce, especially given the news about Russian frost damage and a surprise drop in U.S. winter and spring wheat condition ratings.
“The recent sharp fall in wheat prices was partly attributed to the rapid progress of the harvest in the USA,” Commerzbank said in a note. “However, it is still too early to draw conclusions about the ongoing harvest.”
Fresh export business lent support. Top buyer Egypt booked 460,000 metric tons of Black Sea-origin wheat in an international tender.
CBOT soybean futures declined but held above a one-month low set earlier this week, and corn futures were choppy as traders awaited the USDA’s monthly reports on Wednesday. Analysts surveyed by Reuters on average expect the USDA to raise its forecasts of U.S. 2023/24 and 2024/25 soybean ending stocks, and lower its forecasts for corn inventories.
Meanwhile, the U.S. corn and soybean crops are off to a strong start. The USDA late Monday rated 74% of the U.S. corn crop in “good-to-excellent” condition, down a point from last week but still the highest for this time of year since 2020.
Soybeans were rated 72% “good-to-excellent” in the USDA’s first ratings of 2024 for the oilseed, in line with trade expectations.
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