By Gus Trompiz and Colin Packham
PARIS/CANBERRA, Sept 17 (Reuters) – Chicago wheat inched up on Friday while corn and soybeans edged lower, as the markets consolidated after gains this week, while awaiting U.S. harvest news and further clues on Chinese demand.
The most-active wheat futures on the Chicago Board of Trade Wv1 were up 0.3% at $7.14-3/4 a bushel, as of 1155 GMT.
The contract had eased back from Thursday’s one-week high of $7.16-3/4 but was up nearly 4% over the week, on course for its biggest weekly gain in five.
In Europe, December wheat on Euronext BL2Z1 edged down 0.1% to 248.50 euros ($292.78) a tonne after earlier equalling Wednesday’s two-week high of 249.25 euros.
Attention shifted to supply risks this week after a lower than expected official estimate of Canada’s drought-affected harvest, as well as reduced estimates of French and European Union crops and expectations for a fall in winter wheat sowings in Russia.
“Major wheat futures have all risen in the past week as the generally tight feel in the wheat market continues,” British merchant ADM Agriculture said in a note.
The wheat market was looking ahead to Australia’s harvest, projected to be the country’s second bumper crop in a row, while also bracing for the arrival of northern hemisphere corn.
Harvesting is getting under way in the United States, the world’s biggest corn exporter, while importer China is also preparing to gather its domestic crop.
“It’s that time when corn is about to come in. Corn prices need to be a bit more competitive against feed wheat to help the market balance out,” a European trader said.
CBOT corn futures Cv1 were down 0.3% at $5.27-3/4 a bushel while soybean futures Sv1 were down 0.4% at $12.90-1/2.
The U.S. market was assessing mixed export trends, with storm damage hampering short-term shipments from the U.S. Gulf Coast but soybean sales to China still steady.
Prices at 1155 GMT
Last
Change
Pct Move
End 2020
Ytd Pct Move
CBOT wheat Wv1
714.75
1.75
0.25
640.50
11.59
CBOT corn Cv1
527.75
-1.75
-0.33
484.00
9.04
CBOT soy Sv1
1290.50
-5.50
-0.42
1311.00
-1.56
Paris wheat Dec BL2Z1
248.50
-0.25
-0.10
192.50
29.09
Paris maize Nov EMAc1
218.50
-0.50
-0.23
219.00
-0.23
Paris rape Nov COMc1
598.25
0.00
0.00
418.25
43.04
WTI crude oil CLc1
72.16
-0.45
-0.62
48.52
48.72
Euro/dlr EUR=
1.18
0.00
0.15
1.2100
-2.63
Most active contracts – Wheat, corn and soy US cents/bushel, Paris futures in euros per tonne
($1 = 0.8488 euros)
(Reporting by Gus Trompiz in Paris and Colin Packham Canberra; Editing by Devika Syamnath and David Evans)
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