Wheat futures on the Chicago Board of Trade closed higher on Thursday for a third straight session, lifted by short-covering and stronger-than-expected weekly export sales, traders said. CBOT December wheat settled up 3 cents at $4.14-1/2 per bushel. K.C. December hard red winter wheat ended unchanged at $4.17 per bushel and MGEX December spring wheat closed unchanged at $5.25-1/2.
The US Department of Agriculture reported export sales of US wheat in the latest week at 646,100 tonnes, above a range of trade estimates for 350,000 to 550,000 tonnes. Sales of hard red spring wheat, at 308,800 tonnes, accounted for nearly half the USDA's weekly all-wheat export sales total. Commodity funds hold a large net short position in CBOT wheat, leaving the market susceptible to bouts of short-covering.