Wheat futures fall to fresh 4-week low on more U.S. rainfall
Investing.com
Published Apr 15, 2015 06:00AM ET
Wheat futures trade at 4-week low on forecasts for more U.S. rainfall
Investing.com - U.S. wheat futures fell to a fresh four-week low on Wednesday, after agricultural meteorologists forecast further rains in key U.S. wheat-growing states.
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On the Chicago Mercantile Exchange, US wheat for May delivery hit a session low of $4.9500 a bushel, the weakest level since March 16, before trading at $4.9825 during U.S. morning hours, up 1.25 cents, or 0.25%.
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A day earlier, wheat lost 5.2 cents, or 1.05%, to settle at $4.9700, as updated weather models forecast much-needed rains in key U.S. wheat-growing states.
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The U.S. Department of Agriculture said Monday that the U.S. winter wheat crop was rated 42% good to excellent as of April 12, down from 44% in the preceding week.
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Approximately 34% of the crop was in good to excellent condition in the same week a year earlier.
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The agency also said that 17% of the spring wheat crop was planted as of last week, compared to just 5% in the same week a year earlier and below the five-year average of 11% for this time of year.
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Meanwhile, US corn for May delivery slumped 2.02 cents, or 0.54%, to trade at $3.7138 a bushel. On Tuesday, corn hit $3.7000, a level not seen since March 18, before closing at $3.7340, up 3.0 cents, or 0.81%.
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Prices remained supported amid concerns over wet weather delaying planting in the U.S. grain belt. According to the USDA, 2% of the corn crop was planted as of last week. The five-year average for this time of year is 5%.
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Indications of ample global supplies have weighed on futures in recent sessions. The USDA said last week that U.S. corn inventories at the end of the 2014-15 season in August will total 1.827 billion bushels, up from a previous estimate of 1.777 billion bushels.
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The agency also projected global ending corn stockpiles at 188.5 million metric tons for the 2014-15 season, up from a previous forecast of 185.28 million tons.
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Elsewhere on the Chicago Board of Trade, US soybeans for May delivery eased up 2.65 cents, or 0.28%, to trade at $9.6325 a bushel. Soybean prices climbed 11.4 cents, or 1.21%, on Tuesday to end at $9.6020.
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Prices of the oilseed touched a six-month low of $9.4440 on April 10 as optimism over the outlook for supplies in South America and weak demand for U.S. supplies drove down prices.
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Last week, the USDA forecast global soybean ending stocks at 89.6 million tons, up from 89.5 million tons estimated last month, due to a record crop in Brazil.
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Brazil and Argentina are major soybean exporters and compete with the U.S. for business on the global market. Large South American crop prospects could weigh on demand for U.S. supplies.
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Corn is the biggest U.S. crop, followed by soybeans, government figures show. Wheat was fourth, behind hay.
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Written By: Investing.com
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