SINGAPORE: Chicago wheat slid for a fourth consecutive session on Friday, trading close to a one-week low as the market continued to face headwinds from a stronger and slowing demand for US cargoes. Soybeans and corn markets lost ground.
“There is some pressure on wheat prices from the dollar and lower US weekly exports,” said one grains trader in Singapore.
“But we feel the downside in wheat is limited, supplies are likely to tighten as there is going to be less Black Sea wheat available in the coming months.”
The most-active wheat contract on the Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT) fell 0.4% to $5.55-1/4 a bushel, as of 0307 GMT.
Soybeans lost 0.4% to 10.09-1/4 a bushel and corn slipped 0.5% to 4.66-1/2 a bushel.
The wheat market is facing pressure from the strengthening dollar, which makes the greenback-priced commodities expensive for overseas buyers.
Wheat rises after dropping to 2-1/2-month low on surging US dollar
The US dollar was on the front foot against major peers on Friday after its best single-day performance for three weeks with the Federal Reserve indicating no rush to cut interest rates.
On the physical front, the US Department of Agriculture reported a net decline of 248,900 metric tons in US wheat sales for the 2024/25 marketing year in the week ended March 13, well below expectations for net positive sales of 300,000 to 700,000 tons.
Traders in the agricultural markets are monitoring tariff tussles between the United States and its trading partners, discussions to end the Russia-Ukraine war and US farmers’ plans for spring planting.
China’s soybean imports from the United States jumped 84.1% in the first two months of 2025 compared with a year ago, but competitive pricing and a trade standoff with the US are expected to boost purchases from Brazil in the months ahead.
The International Grains Council on Thursday forecast a rise in global corn production in the 2025/26 season with larger crops seen in the United States, Brazil, Argentina and Ukraine.
The intergovernmental body, in its monthly update, projected there would be a global corn crop of 1.269 billion metric tons, up from 1.217 billion in the previous season.
Traders are also positioning ahead of the USDA’s grain stocks and prospective planting reports on March 31, where the agency will release estimates for farmers’ planting intentions in 2025.
Commodity funds were net buyers of CBOT corn, soybean and soyoil futures contracts on Thursday, traders said.
They were net sellers of soymeal and wheat futures contracts.
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