Wheat rises with Russian crop uncertainty, corn falls on U.S. weather | July 1, 2024

By Heather Schlitz

CHICAGO, July 1 (Reuters) - Chicago wheat futures rose as uncertainty over the size of Russia’s wheat crop spurred traders to cover their massive short positions while cheap prices enticed bargain buying, traders said.

Meanwhile, corn futures fell on prolonged fallout from the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Friday acreage report that showed farmers had planted more corn than expected, and on forecasts of beneficial weather for the U.S. corn belt. Soybeans rose on signs of increased demand.

The most active Chicago Board of Trade wheat contract Wv1 was up 11-1/2 cents at $5.85-1/2 a bushel as of 1540 GMT.

“The market is so oversold right now,” Darin Fessler, hedge advisor at Lakefront Futures and Options, said. “Traders don't want to be short this market if they still don’t have numbers from Russia.”

An uptick in demand for U.S. wheat as well as a U.S. winter wheat harvest that is edging toward the finish line is adding support to wheat prices, traders said.

Corn Cv1 fell 3-1/4 cents to $4.05 a bushel. The market had slumped to a low of $3.99-1/2 on Friday after USDA data was released, the lowest level since November 2020. Soybeans Sv1 rose 11 cents to $11.44-1/2 per bushel.

U.S. farmers planted more corn than the government forecast in March and less soybeans, the USDA data showed on Friday.

“The acres are going to haunt us for a long, long time,” Fessler said.

Increased Chinese demand for U.S. soy and stronger soymeal and oil prices are helping soy futures.

China has booked higher volumes in recent weeks, traders and analysts said, drawn by lower prices and the prospect of Donald Trump returning as president and reigniting trade tensions between Beijing and the U.S., they said.

(Reporting by Heather Schlitz; editing by David Evans)