Wheat slips to new three-month low on ample supply outlook

PARIS/CANBERRA: Chicago wheat futures edged down to a new three-month low on Friday, as a firm dollar and favourable weather across major producing regions pushed the market towards a weekly loss of nearly 3%.

Corn and soybeans were little changed as traders looked ahead to US planting estimates next week while also assessing harvest prospects in South America.

The most-active wheat futures contract on the Chicago Board of Trade was down 0.3% at $6.10-1/2 a bushel by the end of the overnight session, near the session low of $6.08-1/4 that was its lowest since Dec 28.

"The market isn't concerned about any supply issues right now, so the market is on the defensive," a Melbourne-based grains trader said of wheat.

Much-needed moisture is expected this month across the US Plains as well as in Russia, boosting production prospects in the two major exporting nations.

Agriculture consultancy IKAR raised its forecast for Russia's 2021 wheat crop to 79.8 million tonnes, from 78 million earlier.

CBOT soybean futures were down half a cent at $14.13-3/4 a bushel while corn was unchanged on the day at $5.46-1/2.

The International Grains Council forecast global grain production would climb to a record 2.287 billion tonnes in the 2021/22 season, but it expects the larger supply to be entirely absorbed by higher consumption.

"To sum up, the tight situation on the grains and oilseed markets looks set to continue for now," Commerzbank said of the IGC outlook.