PARIS: Euronext fell to a one-month low on Thursday, pressured by losses in Chicago as the market factored in improving US harvest prospects.
Benchmark December milling wheat on Paris-based Euronext settled 2.50 euros, or 1.0%, lower at 239.50 euros ($283.35) a tonne.
It earlier fell to 237.50 euros, its weakest since Aug. 11.
Chicago wheat shed around 2% to drop below the $7 a bushel mark for the first time since late July.
Updated planting data fuelled expectations that the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) will raise production forecast in a report on Friday, including for the US corn harvest that is a bellwether for grain markets.
Increased projections this week for next harvests in Australia and Argentina were also encouraging wheat prices to retreat further from eight-year highs struck in August amid crop setbacks in the northern hemisphere.
In France, firms have been sorting rain-affected wheat to gather milling-grade supplies while turning to livestock feed markets to sell lower-quality crop.
“The wheat market is finding its feet but grain handlers haven’t finished sorting crop and we’ll have a clearer idea in late September,” a French trader said.
German traders were cheered by a new wheat purchase tender issued by Saudi Arabia, a big outlet for German wheat.
According to traders, Saudi state buyer SAGO agreed in the tender to relax its requirement for test weights, a key milling measure that suffered from harvest time rain in parts of Europe.
“The test weight change will give Germany a bigger chance of being used to supply the Saudi tender,” a German trader said.
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