EU wheat falls with Chicago as rally fades; rapeseed hits record

21 Apr, 2022

PARIS: Euronext wheat fell on Wednesday in step with Chicago futures as market participants booked profits after a rally to one-month highs while awaiting indications on harvest prospects and the impact of war in Ukraine.

Chart resistance levels, investment fund flows and Tuesday’s expiry of options against May futures on Euronext contributed to the selling trend, traders said.

May futures settled down 0.2% at 398.50 euros ($432.65) a tonne, after touching a one-month high at 411.00 euros in each of the last two sessions.

New-crop December wheat settled down 0.8% at 356.25 euros, pulling back from a contract high of 370 euros reached on Tuesday.

Chicago wheat was down around 1% in US trading, also easing back from a one-month top on Tuesday.

Financial investors had increased their net long position in Euronext’s wheat futures and options last week, data from the exchange showed.

Euronext prices had rallied earlier this month, supported by a large purchase of French wheat by Egypt, poor conditions for US winter wheat and signs of a protracted conflict in Ukraine.

Egypt has since approved Indian wheat as a new origin for import as it seeks alternatives to Ukrainian supplies.

However, traders were cautious about Indian prospects given Egypt’s quality requirements, shipping costs and uncertainty over the size of India’s incoming harvest following a recent hot spell.

In rapeseed, May futures rose to a record for Euronext at 1,045.75 euros a tonne, as the run-up to the contract’s expiry next week added to volatility linked to oilseed supply tensions. The front-month contract settled up 2.6% at 1,044.25 euros.

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