Chicago Board of Trade wheat futures ended mostly higher on Tuesday after the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) pegged US acreage and quarterly stocks slightly below average trade estimates, traders said.
CBOT May soft red winter wheat, the only lower contract, ended down 3/4 cent at $5.68-3/4 per bushel. Deferred contracts were 4-1/4 to 6-1/2 cents higher. K.C. May hard red winter wheat ended up 6-1/4 cents at $4.93 a bushel, while MGEX May spring wheat rose 4-1/2 cents to settle at $5.39-1/4.
The USDA forecast all US wheat plantings of 44.655 million acres, below the average analyst forecast for 44.982 million acres.
The USDA also estimated wheat stocks as of March 1 at 1.412 billion bushels, just below market expectations for 1.432 billion bushels. Wheat futures came under early pressure from improving crop ratings in key hard red winter wheat states such as Kansas and Texas. Soft red winter wheat ratings improved in Illinois and Arkansas.