(Businessweek) – Wheat futures jumped the most in two weeks on signs of increasing demand for supplies from the U.S., the world’s biggest exporter. Corn prices dropped.
In the week that ended May 16, exporters sold 952,561 metric tons of wheat, the most since April 11, U.S. Department of Agriculture data showed. Shipments of 162,900 tons for delivery in the 12 months that start June 1 were for unknown destinations, and the Dominican Republic bought 68,100 tons.
“We must be fairly well in line with world prices,” Larry Glenn, an analyst at Frontier Ag in Quinter, Kansas, said in a telephone interview. “Wheat is demand-driven.”
Wheat futures for July delivery jumped 2 percent to $7.0225 a bushel at 9:56 a.m. on the Chicago Board of Trade. A close at that price would mark the biggest gain for a most-active contract since May 9. Through yesterday, the grain dropped 12 percent this year on speculation that global production will rise to a record.
Corn futures for December delivery fell 0.1 percent to $5.30 a bushel.
In the U.S., corn is the biggest crop, followed by soybeans, hay and wheat, government data show.
