Wheat futures on the Chicago Board of Trade closed higher on Wednesday, led by the spot September contract on short-covering and optimism that export demand might pick up, traders said. CBOT September wheat settled up 4-3/4 cents at $4.21-3/4 per bushel. K.C. hard red winter wheat and MGEX spring wheat futures also close higher.
Front-month September gained against back months on spreads, following a drop in recent days of the number of contracts registered for delivery against futures, often an indicator that cash markets are providing more lucrative returns.
Concern about the size and quality of Europe's wheat harvest lent support. France's exports of soft wheat outside the EU will fall to 4.8 million tonnes in 2016/17 from an estimated 12.5 million last season, agricultural group InVivo said.
Ahead of the US Department of Agriculture's monthly supply/demand reports on Friday, analysts surveyed by Reuters expect the government to raise slightly its forecasts of US 2016/17 wheat production and ending stocks.