US wheat futures fell on Wednesday, with the Chicago Board of Trade spot price hitting a 16-month low as declines in the stock market spilled over into commodities amid fears of economic recession, traders said. US stocks sagged on fears that efforts to halt the global credit crisis would fail to avert a recession; Dow down 644 points by 2:53 pm CDT (1953 GMT).
Ample global wheat supplies add pressure. At the CBOT, December soft red winter wheat fell 17-1/4 cents, 3 percent, at $5.55-3/4 per bushel, after dipping to $5.54, the lowest spot price since June 2007. March ended down 17-3/4 cents at $5.76. Commodity funds were net sellers of 3,000 CBOT wheat contracts, traders said.
At the Kansas City Board of Trade, December hard red winter wheat fell 23 cents to end at $5.90, the first spot settlement below $6 since July 2007. At the Minneapolis Grain Exchange, December spring wheat fell 15-1/4 cents to settle at $6.38-1/2 a bushel; March ended down 21 at $6.43-1/2.
The MGE December-March spread last traded at a carry of 5 cents, narrowing from 10 cents on Tuesday due to firm cash markets and a lack of farmer offerings of spring wheat. Japan seeks 71,000 tonnes US and Canadian wheat in a tender. USDA said the US winter wheat crop was 73 percent planted, matching the five-year average.
The crop was 46 percent emerged, ahead of the five-year average of 44 percent. Rains in the US Plains HRW wheat region this week boost soil moisture but also delay wheat seedings. CBOT December contract stays below all key moving averages; nine-day RSI falls from 29 to 26, staying in the oversold range of 0 to 30.