Wheat futures rallied on concern that the crop in the U.S., the world’s largest exporter, may deteriorate because of higher temperatures and dry conditions. The December-delivery contract advanced as much as 0.8 percent to $7.0775 a bushel on the Chicago Board of Trade, and was at $7.0525 at 10:09 a.m. Singapore time. Wheat has surged about 30 percent this year on tightening global supplies. The crop deteriorated in the week to Oct. 31 from a week earlier, the U.S. Department of Agriculture said yesterday. Growing areas in the southern plains will have near- to above- normal temperatures and rainfall will be below normal in the seven days from yesterday, Telvent DTN Inc. said in a forecast. “With that week-to-week decline in the condition rating and continued concerns about weather, wheat may post gains,” Chung Yang Ker, an analyst at Phillip Futures Pte., wrote in a note today. “Dryness continues to threaten U.S. winter wheat.” About 46 percent of winter wheat was in good or excellent condition as of Oct. 31, down from 47 percent last week and 64 percent a year earlier, the USDA said. About 92 percent was planted in 18 states compared with 88 percent a week earlier and 81 percent a year earlier. The 18 U.S. producing states tracked by the USDA were forecast by the agency to account for 89 percent of total winter-wheat acreage in the nation this year. Corn Gains December-delivery corn added as much as 0.7 percent to $5.81 a bushel in Chicago, before trading at $5.8025. The corn harvest in the U.S., the world’s biggest grower, may be 12.523 billion bushels this year, FCStone Group Inc., a commodity research and brokerage company, said yesterday, lowering an estimate issued in September. FCStone’s latest forecast compares with 12.664 billion bushels estimated by the U.S. Department of Agriculture on Oct. 8, and last year’s record crop of 13.11 billion bushels. About 91 percent of the corn crop was harvested as of yesterday, up from 83 percent a week earlier and the previous five-year average of 61 percent, the U.S. Department of Agriculture said yesterday. January-delivery soybeans gained as much as 0.5 percent to $12.41 a bushel in Chicago, before trading at $12.39. The soybean crop will reach 3.449 billion bushels, FCStone said. The USDA last month predicted 3.408 billion bushels, up from last year’s record of 3.359 billion bushels. About 96 percent of the soybean harvest was collected, up from 91 percent a week earlier and the five-year average of 79 percent, the USDA said yesterday The department will release its fourth survey-based estimate of U.S. crops on Nov. 9. To contact the reporter on this story: Luzi Ann Javier in Singapore at ljavier@bloomberg.net To contact the editor responsible for this story: James Poole at jpoole4@bloomberg.net

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