Wheat futures on the Chicago Board of Trade fell on Thursday for a seventh straight session, with most-active March hitting a two-month low on technical selling and sluggish export demand before paring losses in the last hour of trade, brokers said. K.C. hard red winter wheat also closed lower but MGEX spring wheat ended modestly higher.
Egypt's state grain buyer, the General Authority for Supply Commodities, said it bought 240,000 tonnes of French wheat in a tender for shipment February 19-28. No US wheat was offered, underscoring its high price, analysts said. Also bearish, forecasts called for beneficial moisture in the US Plains wheat belt next week. USDA reported export sales of US wheat in the latest week at 284,700 tonnes for 2014/15, near the low end of trade expectations for 250,000 to 450,000. USDA also reported sales of 92,400 tonnes for 2015/16.
Strategie Grains raised its estimate of European Union 2014/15 soft wheat exports to 29.3 million tonnes, up 2.1 million from its previous forecast. Iran will import less than 3 million tonnes of wheat in the next year, a senior agriculture ministry official said on Thursday, down from 9 million tonnes it has imported since March 2014.