CHICAGO: Chicago Board of Trade wheat futures edged lower on Friday, and set a ninth consecutive weekly loss, as prices remained pressured by prospects of increased Russian wheat exports, and despite strong demand for US grain and reports that China could buy from the US, market analysts said.
Corn futures also fell, with the most-active contract notching a fifth consecutive weekly loss on growing US harvest supplies and fund liquidation as traders adjusted positions ahead of month end, analysts said.
While CBOT soybeans ended the day mixed on bargain-buying and signs of export demand, with deferred months ending lower. While the most-active contract was up for much of the session, it eased late in the day and marked a third straight weekly loss.
Exporters sold 165,150 metric tons of US soybeans received in the reporting period to unknown destinations for 2026/27 delivery, the US Department of Agriculture said in its daily reporting system on Friday. USDA also reported that an additional 132,000 tons of US soybeans were sold to unknown destinations for the 2026/2027 marketing year.
The most-traded wheat contract on the Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT) settled down 1/4 cent at USD6.03-1/2 per bushel. Prices fell to USD5.93-1/4 on Wednesday, the lowest since July 1, and the contract has fallen more than 23 percent over the past nine weeks. “The funds are setting record short positions in the wheat market, and we’re taking ever-more risk premium in that market,” said Don Roose of US Commodities in West Des Moines, Iowa.
CBOT corn settled down 3-1/2 cents at USD4.47-3/4 per bushel, as the contract has fallen about 15 percent over the past five weeks. CBOT soybeans closed down 1/2 cent at USD12.34-1/4 a bushel.
Shipments from the Black Sea could increase after sources said Russia, the world’s largest wheat exporter, had allowed grain export vessels to leave the Sea of Azov for the first time since July 10.
However, attacks continue in the region, with a Greek container ship sunk on Thursday. On the demand side, Bloomberg reported on Thursday that buyers in China, the world’s biggest crop importer, were seeking offers on US soft red winter wheat.
US exports were already running above expectations, with USDA data showing net export sales of 2026-27 wheat in the week to October 22 at 849,800 metric tons, a marketing-year high.
But traders have also been keeping a close eye on both geopolitical stress and investor positioning ahead of next week’s US election, said market analysts.
US President Donald Trump, speaking ahead of November 3 midterm congressional elections, said on Friday he believed the war with Iran will end soon, without saying when.
Previous statements from the White House indicating that military action will take place against Iran following the election are “causing managed money to leak out of the market, especially the commodities,” Karl Setzer, partner at Consus Ag, said in an analyst note.