PARIS: Euronext wheat futures hit a fresh 7-1/2 year high on Wednesday as speculation about Russia’s plans to impose export levies continued to unsettle the market.
March milling wheat on Paris-based Euronext rose as much as 3.7% to 232.75 euros ($283.12) a tonne, a front-month level not seen since May 2013.
It later pared gains, settling up 2.25 euros, or 1%, at 226.75 euros after Russia’s agriculture ministry announced a proposal for a revised wheat export tax that was lower than levels rumoured earlier in the day, traders said.
An existing Russian plan to introduce a 25 euro per tonne wheat export levy from mid-February, in an effort to cool domestic prices, has already pushed up Russian export prices and led forecasters to reduce estimates for the country’s exports.
“It’s impossible to try to bet what Russian government will do,” a futures dealer said.
“EU prices have to go up with Black Sea prices and eventually more because the EU doesn’t have that much wheat.”
Russia’s agriculture ministry said in a statement on Wednesday it had proposed an increase in the wheat export tax to 45 euro ($55) per tonne starting from March 15.
The country’s economy ministry said on Tuesday the government would consider changes to the tax by the end of this week. “Russia seems to be serious about reducing wheat and other grain exports and the question is now about what suppliers will fill the gap left by Russian wheat,” one German trader said.
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