Spring wheat futures at the Minneapolis Grain Exchange closed higher on Wednesday, taking cues from a rally in Chicago Board of Trade wheat, corn and soyabeans, traders said. CBOT soyabean futures led the way higher, rising to a 34-year top above $12 per bushel in the spot month on strong Chinese demand for vegetable oil.
"The beans pushed us up today," a Minneapolis trader said. Other bullish signals for the grain markets included a drop in the dollar versus the euro and strength in US crude oil futures, with nearby values rising to a one-month high above $96 per barrel. Also, Argentina extended the closure of its wheat export registry indefinitely, a source at the Agriculture Secretariat said.
The move could bolster demand for US wheat. However, the Minneapolis market backed off the day's highs toward the close on light profit taking. Minneapolis March spring wheat settled 4 cents higher at $10.73 per bushel, after reaching $10.82. May ended up 5-1/4 cents at $10.36, and new-crop December was up 10-1/2 cents at $8.63-1/2.
The March/May spread traded at an inverse of 37 to 40 cents. In outright trade, UBS Warburg bought nearly 400 December 2008 contracts, traders said. Volume was Very light at an estimated 2,926 contracts, up from 2,179 lots on Monday but down from 5,175 on Friday. US markets were closed on Tuesday for Christmas.
Weekly export inspection data, delayed until on Wednesday by the holiday, was neutral. The US Department of Agriculture reported export inspections of US wheat for the latest week at 18.450 million bushels, within a range of trade estimates for 17 million to 23 million. But in its daily reporting system, USDA confirmed sales of 120,000 tons of soft red winter wheat to unknown destinations for 2008/2009.
That helped offset some of the pressure from bearish export news on Monday, including Egypt cancelling a snap tender for wheat. Also, a wheat import tender issued by India's State Trading Corp lapsed on Monday with no decision taken.