European wheat prices bounced on Monday following a rise on US markets where the grain was supported by short-covering after posting sharp losses on Friday. May milling wheat on Paris-based Euronext was 2.00 euros or 1.3 percent higher by 1535 GMT at 152.50 euros a tonne after touching 149.50 euros earlier, not far from the contract low of 149.00 euros touched last week.
Most of the activity was focused on May, the last contract for the current 2015/16 season, with the spread narrowing with September, up 1.00 euro at 163.00 euros a tonne. "Prices are on a roller-coaster ride," a French trader said, adding that fundamentals remained bearish without any major weather concern for wheat crops.
The crop outlook remains positive in Russia for the moment and in Ukraine the condition of winter grains has improved over the last six weeks thanks to warm and wet weather, analyst UkrAgroConsult said on Monday. In western Europe, a sharp drop in temperatures over the weekend and forecast for the coming days in eastern France and Germany was not expected to cause significant damage because frost would be limited, traders said. The US National Centers for Environmental Prediction forecast temperatures would be 4-6 degrees Celsius below seasonal norms in the coming week, but would remain in positive territory.
European maize prices were also higher. A delay in plantings due to rainfall this month and more rains expected later this week could delay the bulk of sowings to May, increasing risks for non-irrigated crops' development, growers group AGPM said in a note.