EU Wheat: I Agree With Nick

May London wheat ended Friday GBP0.90 higher at GBP99.00/tonne, with May Paris wheat up EUR0.75 at EUR129.50/tonne. London wheat gained GBP1.75/tonne on the week, with Paris wheat posting gains of EUR2.50/tonne.

Exporters report reasonable buying interest showing up to the near continent and Ireland. Whilst we are not exactly running out of wheat, stocks aren't quite so heavy as had been forecast.

The pound fell after Lib-Dem leader Nick Clegg gave a good account of himself in Thursday night's live televised debate. A strong showing from them at the upcoming election increases that chance of a coalition government.

"I agree with Nick" seemed to sum that particular event up, although Gordon McBroon and David Macaroon both manged to resist the urge to cross to his podium and give his bum a playful pat.

I did that once with Mrs N#1, to which she winked and said "easy tiger" - little did she know I was only searching for the remote controls for the telly, the fat cow.

More large wheat crops are round the corner, with Strategie Grains this week raising it's soft wheat production estimate for the EU-27 to 134.2 MMT, a 3% increase on last year.

The EU Commission say that 2.8 MMT of mostly barley has been accepted into the EU-27 intervention programme so far this season, with a further 2.3 MMT under offer. More than 1.5 MMT of it has come from Germany, and more than a million tonnes from France. In the UK 142,000 MT has been accepted/offered so far.

All of a sudden we've gone from snow and ice to beautiful spring weather, with little evidence of Iceland blotting out the sun. Similarly, in the US Midwest, things are also being described as offering the best planting conditions in years.

Funny then that we've managed to get front month May London wheat to it's highest levels 11th February, with May Paris wheat touching levels not seen since 15th January.

Is this a God given selling opportunity, or simply part of a path to recovery with complacent undercovered consumers littering the way? Ask Nick Clegg, he seems to have all the answers these days.