US wheat futures closed down slightly on Friday, well off lows reached early in the trading session due to weakness in the dollar, traders said. Falling stock markets and mounting concern about decreasing demand for wheat amid the global economic crisis combined to weigh on prices. Late short-covering and a weakening of the dollar helped push wheat close to unchanged.
The Chicago Board of Trade March wheat futures contract settled down 1/4 cent at $5.19-1/4 per bushel while CBOT May wheat was down 1/2 cent at $5.30-1/2 a bushel. Funds sold 1,000 lots. March options expired and traders were eyeing the $5.20 strike price. Kansas City Board of Trade and Minneapolis Grain Exchange wheat futures ended lower, but were well above lows hit earlier in the trading session.
The KCBT March ended down 2 cents at $5.56-1/4 a bushel, and May ended down 3-1/2 cents at $5.63-1/2. MGE spring wheat for March delivery settled down 1 cent at $6.24-3/4 a bushel while the MGE May contract fell 7 cents to $6.05-1/4 a bushel. In Kansas City, an estimated 18,616 futures traded. Minneapolis volume was seen at 4,781 futures. US traders said China bought 30,000 tonnes of US soft red winter wheat after a drought reduced the size of its domestic crop.
The Egyptian state's main wheat buying agency said it wanted to buy cargoes of 25,000 to 60,000 tonnes of optional origin wheat for shipment March 16-31. USDA said export sales of wheat last week 433,500 tonnes (old-crop), within estimates for 250,000 to 450,000 tonnes.
Traders watching option strike prices in range from $5.10 to $5.30. The nearby contract could be drawn to that level, given the open interest remaining at those strikes. US Plains HRW wheat region in need of more rain and chances of significant precipitation fairly limited during the next 10 days. EU clears 507,000 tonnes wheat exports, led by France.
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