Euronext wheat futures hovered near contract lows on Tuesday, as a tumble in Chicago prices and enduring worries about ample supplies put fresh pressure on prices, offsetting support from a weaker euro. December milling wheat, the most active contract on the Paris-based Euronext exchange, dipped 0.50 euros, or 0.31 percent, to 163.00 euros a tonne by 1617 GMT.
It dropped to a session low of 162.50 euros earlier, in tandem with Chicago wheat which fell along with corn futures. Front-month September wheat was unchanged at 159 euros, after slipping to a session low of 158.25 euros. The contract set a low of 158 euros on Monday, which was also the lowest spot price in eight months.
Dealers noted Euronext was broadly tracking losses in Chicago on Tuesday, which were deepened later in the trading day by a surge in the US dollar. A holiday in parts of Europe, meanwhile, made for quiet trading conditions. "With the holiday in Europe, there's not much of a European driver," said one European dealer. "We're just drifting lower with the world markets."
Ample global supplies also continued to add pressure, in light of large harvests from Russia and Ukraine. "Paris wheat futures continue to feel the pinch from large Black Sea grain supplies," said Helen Plant, senior analyst at AHDB, in a market update, noting a need to boost competitiveness of French wheat in the 2017/18 season.