Andrey Sizov
08.02.2024
On Wednesday, U.S. wheat prices continued their upward movement. The March SRW wheat contract closed at $6.02/bu ($221/mt; +1.2% compared to Tuesday). Euronext wheat prices fell to €209.00/mt ($225/mt; -0.9%). U.S. corn dropped to a new contract low of $4.34/bu ($171/mt; -1.0%).
Corn prices were pressured by high market expectations for the South American harvest. Fund sales could have exerted additional pressure on the market. The net short position in corn futures reached 290,000 contracts, the highest volume since April 2019.
The Buenos Aires Grain Exchange (BAGE) reported on Wednesday that key agricultural regions in Argentina are expected to receive between 25 to 100 mm of rain in the coming week. According to exchange analysts, the rains could support the corn crop, which is currently estimated at 56.5 MMT.
In Chicago, wheat prices rose in anticipation of the WASDE report, which is not expected to bring significant changes to U.S. and global wheat stocks. In Paris, wheat prices during trading almost touched the contract low recorded last Thursday. Market participants attribute the decline to sluggish demand for wheat.
Overnight from Wednesday to Thursday, the Odessa and Mykolaiv regions in Ukraine were attacked with drones and missiles. According to local authorities, civilian infrastructure sustained damage.
