EU Wheat Close

Posted by Nogger - a legend in his own mind at 18:41 | Categorized as

20/01/11 -- EU wheat futures closed mostly lower Thursday with Jan London wheat up GBP0.40 to GBP194.50/tonne and Nov falling by GBP1.50 to GBP170.00/tonne. Paris wheat saw Mar fall EUR1.00 at EUR258.75/tonne and Nov EUR2.50 lower at EUR227.75/tonne.

French analysts Strategie Grains reduced its forecast for the EU-27 soft wheat production for the coming harvest by 900,000 MT to 135.6 MT.

However they also dropped their forecast for EU-27 soft wheat exports and cut domestic demand, that led to an increase in ending stocks. European price uncompetitiveness was to blame, they said.

EU weather has turned a bit warmer, whilst beneficial precipitation was received yesterday in Russian Black Sea wheat areas, say Martell Crop Projections.

The IGC, in its first forecast for wheat production in the coming season, pegged global production 23 MMT higher at 670 MMT. They also increased 2010 output by 3 MMT, with 2 MMT of that coming from Australia and the remainder from Argentina.

Ending stocks for 2010/11 were upped 5 MMT to 185 MMT, only 6.5% below the so-called "burdensome" levels of last season.