HAMBURG: European wheat futures in Paris hit new three-week highs on Wednesday, boosted by a strong overnight rise in US prices plus brisk demand in export tenders, but slipped in late trade as US markets dropped.
US grains and soybeans rose sharply on Tuesday after the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) cut its forecasts of US corn and soybean inventories and harvests. But Chicago wheat slumped 1.8% in early Wednesday trade.
December milling wheat on the Paris-based Euronext exchange unofficially closed down 0.75 euro, or 0.3%, at 211.25 euros ($248.51) a tonne. The contract earlier on Wednesday hit 213.25 euros, the highest since Oct. 21 and exceeding Tuesday’s high of 212.50 euros.
“Euronext is still digesting the bullish USDA report seen yesterday,” said Stefan Vogel, head of agricultural commodity markets research at Rabobank.
Robust export demand was supportive, with a tender from Turkey for a hefty 550,000 tonnes of wheat closing on Wednesday and another tender for an unspecified volume from Algeria on Thursday.
A public holiday in France meant some market participants were absent.
In Poland, prices were firm on continued export optimism, with hopes part of the hefty purchase of 860,000 tonnes of wheat in a tender by Saudi Arabia on Monday would be sourced in Poland.
“Exporters expect that a lot of the last Saudi tender will be sourced from Poland and are active buyers for 12.5% protein wheat with the delivery to the port silo in December as well as in January and February 2021,” one Polish trader said. “Polish wheat is still competitive on the world market.”
Exporter purchase prices for December delivery 12.5% wheat have risen 10 zloty on the week to about 920 zloty a tonne (205.3 euros), traders said.—Reuters
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