EU Wheat Closing Comments

EU wheat futures closed lower, with London wheat significantly so, pressured by decent weekend rains across western parts of the region.

November London wheat ended GBP4 lower at GBP104.50/tonne, and November Paris wheat down EUR1.50 at EUR139.50/tonne.

London wheat was particularly badly affected by a strong pound which broke through 1.20 against the euro for the first time since December 2008. Spain’s debt rating was downgraded by the ratings agency Fitch over the weekend.

Decent weekend rains were also a contributory factor, with large parts of the UK and northern France seeing good moisture in the past three or four days.

Rain isn't necessarily good news for everybody. There has been far too much of it in Poland, affecting over 400,000 hectares of cropland, according to media reports.

It has also been cold and very wet on the Canadian Prairies, with wheat and rapeseed plantings severely delayed. That shortens the growing cycle and greatly increases the chance of frost damage at the end of the season.

German farmers have offered a total 1.828 MMT of barley into EU intervention this season according to data released today, compared with just 141,000 MT last season. That is more than ten times the volume offered into intervention here in the UK this season.