Andrey Sizov
19.03.2025
Prices of most grains declined on Tuesday. The May SRW wheat contract closed at $5.65/bu ($208/mt; -0.6% compared to Monday). The May U.S. corn contract fell to $4.59/bu ($181/mt; -0.5%). The May Euronext wheat contract settled at €222.25/mt ($243/mt; -1.0%). The May HRW wheat contract in Kansas rose to $6.06/bu ($223/mt; +0.1%).
As of March 16, the European Union had exported 14.9 mmt of soft wheat, down from 22.9 mmt a year earlier, according to European Commission data. Analysts warned that grain export figures from France and Italy for 2024 remain incomplete.
S&P Global raised its forecast for U.S. corn planted area by 0.3 million hectares to 38.2 million hectares. A year earlier, corn acreage stood at 36.7 million hectares.
Between October and February, China imported 1.1 mmt of corn, the lowest volume since the 2017/18 season, Bloomberg reported, citing customs data.
The presidents of the United States and Russia held a phone call lasting more than 2.5 hours. The two sides agreed to a mutual 30-day suspension of strikes on energy infrastructure, an exchange of prisoners of war, and the start of negotiations on enhancing maritime security in the Black Sea. In response to the U.S. proposal for a 30-day ceasefire, Putin outlined key conditions: effective control over a ceasefire along the entire front, an end to mobilization in Ukraine, and a halt to the rearmament of Ukrainian forces. Both sides agreed to continue consultations.
Jordan’s Ministry of Industry, Trade, and Supply announced a tender for 120,000 mt of wheat on Wednesday, but later canceled it, according to market participants.
Last week, bids for Russian 12.5% wheat in deep-sea ports dropped to 17,300–17,800 rub/mt from 17,500–18,000 rub/mt the previous week, as per SovEcon estimate. This marks the first price decline since mid-February. The price drop was driven by exporters lowering purchase prices.
