PARIS/SINGAPORE: Wheat edged higher on Thursday, as bargain buying lifted prices from a near four-month low hit in the previous session after Russia allowed grain export vessels to leave the Sea of Azov for the first time since July 10, improving supply prospects.
Soybeans slid, while corn was largely unchanged, with both products under pressure from a US harvest that boosted supply.
“The wheat market has already given up much of the gains due to Black Sea supply issues,” said one Australia-based trader. “We think the market is just trying stabilise at the current levels.”
The most-active wheat contract on the Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT) rose 0.2 percent to USD6.00 a bushel, as of 1233 GMT, having hit its lowest since early July on Wednesday.
Soybeans lost 0.5 percent to USD12.31-1/2 a bushel while corn was down 0.1 percent to USD4.51-1/2 a bushel.
Russian authorities have issued permits for vessels carrying grain for export to leave the Sea of Azov for the first time since July 10, when they closed maritime traffic in the area due to Ukrainian drone attacks.
The permits to pass through the Kerch Strait, which links the Sea of Azov and the Black Sea, would be issued for a period through November 15, sources told Reuters. Two sources said a Russian naval convoy would accompany the vessels through the Black Sea.
“The key question now is whether the market has overreacted to improving Russian logistics: Azov clearances are temporary, Black Sea security remains poor and new Arctic capacity is tiny relative to Russia’s normal export programme,” CM Navigator analysts said.
Ample US harvest supplies continued to weigh on CBOT soybean and corn prices.
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