BLBG:Wheat Slides for a Second Day as Importers May Favor Russia Over U.S., EU
Wheat fell for a second day in Chicago on speculation buyers of the grain will turn to Russian supplies and shun the U.S. and the European Union. Rice slid.
Russia’s overall grain harvest may total 90 million metric tons in 2011 and exporters will ship 1.5 million tons in July, First Deputy Prime Minister Viktor Zubkov said yesterday. That’s up from the 85 million tons forecast by Prime Minister Vladimir Putin last month. Egypt, the world’s biggest wheat importer, said this week it may add Romania and Ukraine as suppliers.
“We may have a reminder of just how much cheaper wheat from Russia has become since the opening of their export window when Egypt tenders for wheat again,” said Dave Norris, an independent grain broker in Harrogate, England. “Any sharp price rises in the EU will only serve to alienate EU wheat on the export front even further.”
Wheat for September delivery declined 6.75 cents, or 1 percent, to $7.0025 a bushel by 11:23 a.m. London time on the Chicago Board of Trade. Milling wheat for November delivery traded on NYSE Liffe in Paris gained 75 cents, or 0.4 percent, to 198.50 euros ($281.02) a ton.
Egypt purchased Russian-grown wheat this month for the first time since the eastern European country barred all grain exports last year. The ban expired July 1 as scheduled. Egypt is seeking to buy at least 55,000 tons of soft wheat at a tender today.
Corn, Soybeans
Corn for December delivery slipped 0.75 cent, or 0.1 percent, to $6.7775 a bushel in Chicago. The grain has climbed 7.8 percent this year as rainfall in the U.S., the world’s top grower and exporter, delayed seeding.
Soybeans for November delivery added 1 cent, or 0.1 percent, to $13.85 a bushel. A gain today would be the 10th in a row. The oilseed increased 40 percent in the past year, partly on rising demand from China, the biggest importer.
Rice for September delivery dropped 22.5 cents, or 1.3 percent, to $16.775 per 100 pounds. The grain is still up 13 percent in July, on course for the biggest monthly advance since October.
To contact the reporter on this story: Tony C. Dreibus in London at tdreibus@bloomberg.net.
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Claudia Carpenter at ccarpenter@bloomberg.net.
