EU Wheat Declines But Ends Off Session Lows
27/02/12 -- EU grains finished mixed but mostly lower. Mar 12 London wheat closed down GBP0.25/tonne to GBP164.00/tonne and Mar 12 Paris wheat fell EUR1.50/tonne to EUR206.00/tonne.It was a topsy turvy sort of a day with futures both sides of the Channel closing well off session lows.
Most active May 12 Paris wheat fell below EUR200/tonne for the first time in a month in early trade before ending the day EUR0.50/tonne higher at EUR202/tonne.
The euro was a bit weaker today, which helped Paris grains.
The EU-27 wheat harvest is set to rise this year, lifting inventories by 40%, despite damage from cold weather in many areas and a threat from a drought in Spain, report Agrimoney.com.
"The European Commission, in its first estimate for this year's harvests, pegged the soft wheat crop at just under 133m tonnes, a rise of 3.2m tonnes over the 2011 result," they say.
"The forecast reflected ideas of an above-average yield, of 5.7 tonnes per hectare, which would be the best result in four years, despite setbacks from cold earlier this month," they add.
