Euronext wheat edged higher in afternoon trading on Thursday, in a technical recovery from an earlier 10-day low, as Chicago futures steadied and traders weighed harvest prospects.
September milling wheat on Paris-based Euronext was up 0.87 euro, or 0.5%, at 184.87 euros ($199.38) a tonne by 1643 GMT.
It earlier fell to 183 euros, its weakest since May 4, as Chicago wheat slipped to a near two-month low.
Later consolidation on the US market, which edged back above the psychological $5 a bushel level, helped Euronext recover, dealers said.
"We're seeing a bit of a technical bounce more than anything," one futures dealer said of wheat.
Wheat has been pressured this week by US Department of Agriculture (USDA) forecasts projecting record world wheat stocks in 2020/21, as well as expectations that recent rainfall across Europe and the Black Sea region will help crops after a dry spell.
However, traders said dry conditions were persisting in parts of Europe while some analysts were making downward revisions to harvest forecasts.
French consultancy Strategie Grains, citing adverse weather, cut its forecast for the 2020 soft wheat harvest in the European Union plus Britain to 132.9 million tonnes from 135, putting it 13.6 million tonnes below last year's hefty harvest.
The consultancy raised its EU soft wheat export forecast for 2019/20 in view of strong demand and less competition from Black Sea countries.
In Germany, traders were assessing the impact of much needed May rains, with wet weather also forecast from Friday into the weekend.
"I think there are hopes the rain will have prevented major dryness stress to crops after spring suddenly turned into a virtual drought period," one German trader said.
"But I think we will see harvest forecasts cut slightly in the near future."
Standard bread wheat with 12% protein for September delivery in Hamburg was offered for sale little changed at around 1.5 euro under the Paris December contract. Buyers were bidding around 2 euros under Paris.
In Russia, Ukraine and Kazakhstan, beneficial May rain has put the major Black Sea producers back on track for large wheat exports in the new marketing season, analysts said.
For the 2019/20 July-June season, Ukraine's economy ministry said it will not increase its 20.2 million tonne wheat export quota.
Russia has sent a second shipment of wheat to Saudi Arabia after its first export cargo arrived earlier in May, the Gulf Kingdom said.
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