Wheat rises for 3rd session on dry weather, Ukraine

May 6th, 2014

By:

Category: Grains

(Reuters) – U.S. wheat futures rose for a third straight session on Tuesday, hit by worries that tensions in Ukraine could disrupt grain supplies and concerns that U.S. production may be curbed due to hot, dry weather across the southern Plains.

FUNDAMENTALS

* Chicago Board Of Trade July wheat rose 0.45 percent to $7.32-1/4 a bushel, having closed up 1.8 percent on Monday when the grain hit a high of $7.40-1/2 a bushel, the strongest since June 2013.

* July soybeans fell 0.31 percent to $14.58-3/4 a bushel, having closed down 0.5 percent on Monday.

* July corn fell 0.34 percent to $5.06-1/4 a bushel, having gained 1.7 percent in the previous session.

* U.S. Department of Agriculture said 31 percent of the U.S. winter wheat crop was rated in good to excellent condition, down 2 percentage points from the previous week and in line with trade expectations.

* Scorching temperatures in the southern U.S. Plains over the weekend stressed developing winter wheat crops that have already endured months of drought, and relief is not expected until mid-week, forecasters said on Monday.

* Farmers had planted just 29 percent of their corn crop as of May 4, up 10 percentage points from a week earlier, according to the USDA’s weekly crop progress and condition report. That compares with the five-year average of 42 percent and analyst expectations of 33 percent.

* USDA after the close said the U.S. soybean crop was 5 percent planted, behind the five-year average of 11 percent and below an average of analyst estimates of 8 percent.

* Canadian canola stocks have grown to an all-time high for this time of year, while wheat stocks are the biggest in 20 years, according to Statistics Canada estimates released on Monday, reflecting a record-breaking harvest and backlog moving crops by rail.

* Pro-Russian rebels shot down a Ukrainian helicopter in fierce fighting near the eastern town of Slaviansk on Monday, and Kiev drafted police special forces to the southwestern port city of Odessa to halt a feared westward spread of rebellion.

MARKET NEWS

* The dollar was subdued in Asia on Tuesday, holding largely around where it began this week after an aimless session overnight with holidays in Japan and Britain crimping activity in markets.

* Brent crude oil fell by more than $1 a barrel on Monday, pressured by reports that China’s manufacturing sector contracted and Libya’s oil output was recovering.

*  U.S. stocks ended slightly higher as data showed strength in the services sector and Apple shares rose above $600 for the first time since late 2012.

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