Eastern European wheat markets were mixed on Thursday, with benchmark Paris prices near a five-month low, as operators awaited US government crop forecasts and the start of harvesting in major European wheat belts. November milling wheat on the Paris-based Euronext market was unchanged on the day at 181.75 euros a tonne at 1551 GMT. It earlier equalled a five-month low of 181.50 euros from Wednesday as it continued to test its contract low of 181.00 euros.
Chicago wheat was also hesitant as the market tried to find a footing after a contract low in the previous session. The run-up to Friday's monthly supply-and-demand estimates from the US Department of Agriculture encouraged some traders to square short positions after heavy losses across grain markets.
Traders in Europe were also waiting for harvesting to start after wet weather raised some crop quality concerns despite prospects for high output levels. "Some operators are in a wait-and-see mood before the USDA report," one futures dealer said. "There are some crop quality worries in Europe; it's the talking point at the moment." The European Union is expected to gather its biggest crop in six years this summer, but heavy rain could hurt wheat quality if it continues during the summer, analysts said.
"Pressure from the harvest should continue to weigh on prices," grain consultancy ODA said. "The quality risk - in the US, EU and the Black Sea - will have to monitored, and this could limit the downside to prices." Traders snapped up the entire volume of maize available under the EU's duty-free import quota for the second half of this year as the market anticipated that falling prices would lead the EU to re-introduce tariffs on non-quota imports.
The EU also cleared 31,500 tonnes of Ukrainian maize under a separate duty-free quota created this year. In exports, the EU this week granted licences for 329,000 tonnes of soft wheat, taking the total since the beginning of the 2014/15 season on July 1 to 350,000 tonnes, official data showed on Thursday. German cash wheat premiums firmed as rain fell again in much of Germany at a key time shortly before the harvest, when wheat needs sunshine and warmth to ensure quality such as high protein content.
Standard new crop wheat with 12 percent protein content for delivery in Hamburg from September was offered for sale at a premium of 5.5 euros over the Paris November contract against 5 euros over on Wednesday. Buyers were offering 4.5 euros over Paris against 4 euros over on Wednesday. "Rain is falling only a couple of weeks before the wheat harvest is due to start, and this is causing concern that we could see a loss of quality," one German trader said.