PARIS: Euronext wheat edged higher on Friday to hold near 14-year highs as plans by Iraq to make a large import purchase added to concerns about global supplies after top exporter Russia suggested further possible curbs on its shipments.
The most active March milling wheat contract on the Paris-based Euronext settled up 1.75 euros, or 0.6%, at 294.00 euros ($336.45) a tonne. On Thursday it had reached 296.00 euros, the highest price on a second-month position on Euronext since September 2007.
Comments by Russia's agriculture minister this week that the country would adopt grain export quotas in the first half of 2022 and could reinforce a wheat export tax put the focus back on ebbing world stocks. The Russian government has been taxing grain exports this year to cool domestic prices but these remain high.
The possibility of an additional brake on Russian exports has unsettled traders who see little room for European Union supplies to fill the gap after brisk EU exports this season. "Russia curbing exports will only put stress on an already tight EU wheat balance sheet," a futures dealer said.
"When you combine this with heavy rain in Australia potentially knocking yields and quality, then you may not even have the buffer of the southern hemisphere to cover demand."
Heavy rain in Australia has created concern about late damage to what has been expected to be a bumper wheat crop there, although weather charts pointed to a drier week ahead.
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