Spring wheat futures on the Minneapolis Grain Exchange closed lower on Thursday, influenced by declines in the Kansas City wheat market and favourable weather in the northern US Plains spring wheat belt, traders said.
MGE July spring wheat ended down 2-1/2 cents at $4.59 per bushel after dipping below its 20-day moving average at $4.57. Deferred months-closed down 1/2 to 10 cents.
Volume was estimated by the exchange at 5,698 contracts, down from 7,803 on Wednesday. Country Hedging net sold 100 July, 200 September and 100 December contracts while UBS Warburg sold 200 July, 100 September and 200 December, traders said. Generally favourable conditions for the emerging spring wheat crop in the northern US Plains were bearish.
The US Department of Agriculture said the crop was 97 percent planted and 83 percent emerged as of Sunday, ahead of five-year averages. The USDA said 73 percent of the crop was rated in good to excellent condition. But concerns about the size of the drought-hit US hard red winter wheat crop underpinned values. Rains arriving in the Southern Plains HRW belt arrived too late to boost production prospects.
"The scattered showers will ease stress on some of the filling wheat crop in the north, but it's too late to help most of the crop," said Meteorlogix forecaster Joel Burg.
Exports were quiet overnight. Iraq is still sitting on the bids it received May 9 in a tender to buy 1.5 million tonnes of wheat, and traders were waiting to see if India would issue another tender to buy wheat.