The US wheat market was firm across the board on Tuesday. In Chicago, SWR wheat was up 9 US cents for December at 534.00 US cents/bushel. HRW wheat in Kansas City was up 9.50 US cents for December at 523.50 US cents/bushel. Spring wheat in Minneapolis also ended trading firmer, with gains of 4 to 5 US cents in the front months.
The main driver of the upward movement was a weaker US dollar. The expected interest rate cut by the Fed is pushing down the price of the dollar, which is boosting the commodity markets. Fundamental impetus came from the USDA's Crop Progress report: the US spring harvest is almost complete at 94%, two percentage points faster than usual. By contrast, winter wheat acreage is lagging slightly behind, at 11% compared to the five-year average of 13%.
Internationally, the focus is on France, where the Ministry of Agriculture has adjusted the wheat harvest slightly upwards to 33.3 million tons. However, pressure came from Brussels: EU wheat exports fell by 1.95 million tons to 3.78 million tons year-on-year between July and mid-September.
Things looked green again on Euronext. December gained €0.25 to €191.25 per tonne.
