US Plains hard red winter wheat basis bids were mostly steady on Thursday, with country wheat players eyeing soaring futures prices amid sporadic harvesting of the new crop.
There was some skittishness among millers as harvest delays due to rain left new-crop supplies light in some areas that normally would be well stocked at this point in the season. And price gains were prompting farmers and end-users alike to reevaluate marketing and purchasing plans.
As well, yield concerns were spreading through the region as harvest advances, albeit slowly. While some areas in Oklahoma and southern Kansas were reporting lower-than-expected yields, adding to the concerns, Kansas State University agronomy state leader Jim Shroyer said in a report Wednesday that drought stress, tied at least partly to root disease, was hurting the new crop in north-west Kansas.
The crop concerns helped Kansas City Board of Trade wheat futures stage another limit-up rally on Wednesday. The KCBT July wheat contract ended up 29-1/2 cents, or 5.3 percent, at $5.88-1/2, just off the new high of $5.89. September hit a new high of $6.03 before ending up 28 cents, or 4.8 percent, at $6.01, and December wheat ended up 24-1/2 cents, or 4.2 percent, at $6.10-3/4, after hitting a new high of $6.16.
Adding to the bullish tone Thursday, the US Department of Agriculture reported net sales of US wheat over the past week totalled 413,100 tonnes, 19 percent above the previous week. Trade expectations were for 200,000 to 400,000 tonnes.