Wheat up on EU crop woes, soy down as China tariff looms

CHICAGO: US wheat futures rose sharply for a second consecutive session on Thursday on tightening global supplies as adverse weather slashed production in key exporting countries, including France and Germany.

Prices were further supported by a weaker dollar, which makes U.S. shipments more attractive to buyers holding other currencies.

Soybean futures eased ahead of an increase in import tariffs on Friday by China, the world's top importer of the oilseed.

Corn followed soybeans lower, with declines limited by concerns about excessive heat in the U.S. Midwest farm belt as the crop is entering its pollination stage of development.

The European Union may harvest almost 6 million tonnes less wheat this year after crops in the north of the bloc suffered from a hot, dry spring as well as late signs of crop damage in top EU producer France, a Reuters poll showed.

The bloc's soft wheat exports are down about 16 percent from a year ago, according to official export/import data.

"The Europeans are saying they're going to have a lot less exportable supply," said Mike Zuzolo, president of Global Commodity Analytics.

"They're tightening up their price to keep more supplies at home, especially with No. 1 and No. 2 producers France and Germany coming in with lower expectations on production," he said, referring to rising export prices in Europe.

Chicago Board of Trade September soft red winter wheat futures were up 14-1/2 cents, or 3 percent, at $5.05-1/2 a bushel at 11:48 a.m. CDT (1648 GMT). The contract climbed above its 200-day moving average, encountering overhead chart resistance at its 20-day moving average.

K.C. September hard red winter wheat was up 19 cents, or 3.9 percent, at $5.03 a bushel.

August soybeans were down 5 cents at $8.43 a bushel, poised for a fifth consecutive daily decline.

China is set to raise tariffs on U.S. soybeans on Friday to a level that is expected to diminish Chinese demand for U.S. shipments.

CBOT September corn fell 1/2 cent to $3.51-1/2 a bushel.

Drier weather is expected across most of the corn belt over the next week, with high temperatures on Thursday expected to reach the 90s Fahrenheit.