Soft red winter wheat futures on the Chicago Board of Trade closed steady to lower on Thursday but gained against the K.C. and Minneapolis hard wheat markets as funds liquidated inter-market spread positions, traders said. Nearby CBOT December wheat settled unchanged at $5.26-1/4 a bushel but gained against back months, supported by tight supplies of deliverable-grade soft red winter wheat following a low-quality US harvest.
The spread moves helped underpin CBOT wheat despite poor weekly export sales and a stronger dollar, which tends to make US grain less attractive on the world market. The dollar hit a three-month high against a basket of major currencies on comments from Federal Reserve officials suggesting a growing chance of an interest rate hike next month.
USDA reported export sales of US 2015/16 wheat in the week to October 29 at 84,600 tonnes, below a range of trade estimates for 300,000 to 500,000 tonnes and the smallest weekly total since September 24. K.C. hard red winter and Minneapolis Grain Exchange spring wheat futures closed lower, with front contracts in both markets settling at a discount to CBOT wheat. Wheat futures underpinned by concerns about dry conditions in the southern US Plains winter wheat belt. Rains fell in the region on Wednesday but missed dry patches in eastern areas, and forecasts look dry for the next two weeks.
Comments
Comments are closed for this article.