HAMBURG: European wheat futures in Paris rose on Tuesday supported by strength in US corn and soyabean markets and strong recent demand for European wheat.

Competitive prices for what is expected to be a bumper Australian harvest and improving conditions for US winter wheat crops were capping wheat prices, dealers said.

Front-month December milling wheat on the Paris-based Euronext unofficially closed up 1.0 euro, or 0.4%, at 210.25 euros ($249.40) a tonne, steadying above a one-week low touched on Monday.

“It’s status quo in wheat, which would be correcting a bit if it weren’t for corn and soybeans being so bullish,” a futures dealer said.

Farm office FranceAgriMer increased its forecast of French soft wheat exports outside the European Union in 2020/21, pointing to brisk demand for a smaller French surplus this season.

In Germany, hopes for new export sales and a busy programme of ships loading wheat in German ports this month kept prices in Hamburg above Paris levels.

Standard bread wheat with 12% protein for November delivery in Hamburg was offered for sale unchanged at about 3.5 euros over Paris December.

“Repeated shipments of German wheat continue to Algeria this month,” one German trader said. “Pakistan is tendering to buy 400,000 tonnes of wheat on Wednesday and Germany looks like having a good chance of supplying any Pakistani purchase after recent shipments.”

Three ships are each loading about 30,000 tonnes of wheat for Algeria in German ports this week, traders said. Another is set to load about 65,000 tonnes for Pakistan.

With Britain’s trade relationship in 2021 with the EU still uncertain, British flour mills continue to buy wheat in Germany. Two ships each with just over 3,000 tonnes of German wheat sailed for Britain in past days.—Reuters