Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Board of Trade wheat futures settled lower on profit-taking on Monday after approaching a three-month high reached during the previous session, traders said.
The setback in wheat futures came after a reduced official estimate of the U.S. harvest and heightened tensions in the Ukraine war put renewed attention on global supply risks.
Soybean futures, meanwhile, ended higher after falling to their lowest in about two months earlier in the session and dropping on Friday, when the U.S. Department of Agriculture issued data on quarterly stocks.
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U.S. wheat futures closed higher on Thursday on concerns over the limited availability of supplies for export in Russia, analysts said.
“Prices have stabilized a bit after the sharp price break Friday,” said Tomm Pfitzenmaier, analyst for Summit Commodity Brokerage.
The most-active CBOT wheat contract closed down 9-1/2 cents at $9.12 per bushel after rising as high as $9.38-3/4 (all figures US$). On Friday, the contract reached $9.45-3/4, its highest price since June 29.
CBOT corn finished 3-1/4 cents stronger at $6.80-3/4 per bushel. Soybeans closed 9-1/4 cents higher at $13.74 per bushel, after falling earlier to $13.61-1/4, its lowest price since Aug. 4.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture said on Friday the 2022 U.S. wheat harvest was smaller than previously forecast and cut its crop assessment below analysts’ expectations to 1.65 billion bushels.
In a separate quarterly stocks report, USDA on Friday reported U.S. corn inventories were below analysts’ expectations and soybean inventories topped estimates. The larger-than-expected soybean stocks added pressure to a soy market already under pressure from competition from South American supplies.
After the close of trading on Monday, weekly USDA data showed the U.S. corn harvest was 20 per cent complete and soybeans were 22 per cent harvested. Analysts were expecting harvests to be 22 per cent complete for corn and 20 per cent done for soybeans.
“An adequate U.S. soybean crop along with an expected and potentially record large South American crop will make it difficult for soybeans to maintain rallies,” Pfitzenmaier said.
— Reporting for Reuters by Tom Polansek in Chicago, Gus Trompiz in Paris and Naveen Thukral in Singapore.
