Wheat Futures Higher on Weather Issues Worldwide — Daily Grain Highlights

By Kirk Maltais

--Wheat for December delivery rose 2.4% to $5.80 1/4 a bushel on the Chicago Board of Trade on Wednesday, with supply issues for overseas wheat continuing to provide CBOT wheat with a boost.

--Corn for December delivery rose 0.9% to $4.13 1/4 a bushel.

--Soybeans for November delivery rose 0.9% to $10.21 a bushel.

HIGHLIGHTS

Different Pictures: The USDA said in its latest Crop Progress report Tuesday afternoon that the spring wheat harvest in the U.S. is proceeding at a normal pace. But the health of wheat crops are more troubled elsewhere, helping support CBOT futures today. "Ideas of good crops in the U.S. and Canada went against reports of dry weather in eastern Europe and Russia and too wet weather in France and Germany," Jack Scoville of Price Futures Group said in a note.

Bouncing Off the Bottom: Wednesday's short-covering wave comes as prices do what they usually do at this time of year - setting their lows and gradually rising as the harvest begins and progresses, said Joel Karlin of Ocean State Research. "A dry last half of August into the start of September is not the best finish for soybeans, so some are wondering about the USDA response in next week's crop production report," Karlin said. The USDA's next WASDE report is due next Thursday.

INSIGHT

Gone Stale: Traders today looked for new factors outside of the large U.S. crop being harvested in the fall. "The market knows there is a big crop out there--that is now old news," said Naomi Blohm of Total Farm Marketing in a note. "That 'big crop' news will keep the market fundamentally from rallying sky high, however, now grain markets are looking for 'future news'." Attention is turning to weather in Brazil, as well as the potential for early frosts in the U.S., Blohm said.

Shallow End: Grain traders are watching the lower water levels of the Mississippi River -- which are down amid dry weather. As a result, restrictions on load sizes have been implemented, said the American Commercial Barge Line in a note. The ACBL cautions delays of 1-2 days for shipments traveling on the river. For grains, delays to shipments impact the flow of grain exports out of the U.S. -- with much of the grain shipped overseas traveling down the river before being shipped out from New Orleans ports. Ag analysts say the water levels are expected to keep dropping, which may further squeeze river transit for grain shipments.

AHEAD

--The USDA will release its weekly export sales report at 8:30 a.m. ET Friday.

--The USDA will release its weekly grains export inspections report at 11 a.m. ET Monday.

--The USDA will release its weekly Crop Progress report at 4 p.m. ET Monday.

--The CFTC will release its weekly Commitment of Traders report at 3:30 p.m. ET Monday.

Write to Kirk Maltais at kirk.maltais@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

September 04, 2024 15:07 ET (19:07 GMT)

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