US grains futures edged higher on Tuesday, with corn prices touching a decade high, as unfavourable US weather conditions and stalled Black Sea exports due to the Ukraine crisis intensified worries over tightening global supplies.
The most-active corn contract on the Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT) climbed as much as $8.13-3/4 a bushel, its highest since September 2012, from Monday’s close of $8.07.
US corn planting was 4% complete as of Sunday, below the five-year average of 6%, the US Department of Agriculture said in a report issued after CBOT grain markets closed on Monday, and the 5% forecast in a Reuters poll of analysts.
CBOT wheat was up 0.8% at $11.37-1/4 a bushel by 0535 GMT, extending gains into a second day, while CBOT soybeans rose for a fifth session, up 0.6% at $17.24-3/4 a bushel.
The USDA rated 30% of US winter wheat in good-to-excellent condition, down two percentage points from a week ago. The rating was below an average of analyst expectations and the lowest for this time of year since 1996.
Funds’ bullish CBOT bets swell further as supply fears simmer
Approximately 69% of the US winter wheat crop was in an area experiencing drought as of April 12, the government said.
The USDA’s first estimate of soybean progress for 2022 showed planting as 1% complete, matching the average analyst expectation but behind the five-year average of 2%.
Traders were at the same time worried that the Russia-Ukraine conflict will continue to disrupt exports from the Black Sea region, a key global grain supplier.
French President Emmanuel Macron said on Monday his dialogue with Russian President Vladimir Putin has stalled after mass killings were discovered in Ukraine, as Russian forces have launched what Ukrainian officials described as the second phase of the war.
“Allegations of war crimes in Ukraine may harden the resolve of various countries to strengthen sanctions against the Russian state and its firms, which could further restrict commodity supplies,” economists at National Australia Bank said in a note.
Comments
Comments are closed.