Nogger's Blog

04/03/11 -- EU wheat futures closed mostly lower with Mar London wheat down GBP2.80 at GBP196.55/tonne, and new crop Nov falling GBP0.30 to GBP163.00/tonne. Paris wheat closed with Mar down EUR1.50 to EUR253.00/tonne and Nov EUR2.00 easier to EUR217.00/tonne.

On the week as a whole that leaves Mar London wheat down GBP8.45/tonne and Mar Paris wheat EUR9.75/tonne lower.

Wheat was higher earlier in the day but fell away in afternoon trade as Chicago grains came under pressure. That appears to have been due to rising crude oil, talk is that this is forcing spec money out of grains.

It could also be a feeling that a weekend is a long time in Libya and anything could be on the cards come Monday morning.

At home it's been a funny old week on the weather front with reasonably warm daytime temperatures and a few frosty nights under clear skies. A bit of sunshine and spring warmth certainly seems to be waking the crops up, with local fields that I see on a regular basis certainly having grown visibly in the past week.

Elsewhere "pretty good rain last week helped crops in France and Spain, although subsoil dryness is still a worry in France. Eastern Europe remains stuck in a cold pattern with snow predicted for the weekend in Poland," say Martell Crop Projections.

Whilst EU wheat exports are well ahead of last year, the pace has slowed dramatically since Christmas. Euro strength is one of the reasons behind this, with the single currency pushing through 1.40 against the dollar for the first time in almost four months today.