Southeast Asia begins buying US wheat again

 

 

As global wheat prices start to decline, buyers in Southeast Asia are purchasing US wheat again, which previously was suffering from low sales due to high prices.

 

Thailand purchased 50,000 tonnes of US wheat, including soft white wheat at around US$250 a tonne inclusive of cost and freight, hard red winter wheat at US$270 a tonne and dark northern spring wheat at US$335 a tonne for shipment in March.

 

There is some activity in the market as global wheat prices have weakened, said a Singapore-based trader.

 

Although US wheat sales to Asia have been declining, traders said Thai mills pay a premium of US$50 per tonne for US wheat as they are used to the quality.

 

Australia sold about 70,000 tonnes of prime wheat to Southeast Asian mills at around US$260 a tonne, C&F.

 

Australian farmers are selling aggressively because global prices are dropping, said another trader who sells Australian wheat in Southeast Asia. He expects Australian sales to pick up.

 

Japan this week bought 91,000 tonnes of wheat from the US and Canada, according to a farm ministry official said. South Korean flour miller CJ is seeking 24,000 tonnes of US wheat for April shipping, traders said.

 

Corn trade was also active with softening benchmark CBOT prices, which have slid more than 10% this week on estimates of a record crop in the US.

 

Malaysia bought 60,000 tonnes of Brazilian corn at US$251 a tonne, C&F for arrival in April. The country also took Indian corn at US$235-US$240 a tonne but volumes were small and the cargoes will be shipped in containers.

 

Indian corn exports have picked up in the past two weeks on competitive pricing after a slow start this season caused by flood damage, traders said. Traders have sold 50,000 tonnes of Indian corn this month to Vietnam and Malaysia for shipment in January and February as stocks lose some of their excessive moisture.

 

South Korean importers bought about nine cargoes of US corn on Thursday (Jan 14) for shipment between late March and May as a steep decline in prices triggered demand. The corn was purchased for about US$230 to US$240 per tonne, including cost and freight.