May 26, 2020

 

EU wheat market remains strong

 

 

As participants assessed varied crop conditions in Europe and the Black Sea region, Euronext wheat prices climb higher on Monday, Reuters reported.

 

September milling wheat was up EUR1 or 0.5% at EUR189.25 a tonne by 1527 GMT, but holding below Thursday's four-week high of EUR190.25.

 

Volumes were light due to a US market closure for Memorial Day.

 

Export prices rose in Russia and Ukraine last week due to crop concerns, analysts said.

 

Traders were assessing forecasts of rain this week in the Black Sea region along with a dry weekly outlook in France, the EU's top wheat producer.

 

"As often in the mid-May to early July period, the market is factoring in a weather premium," consultancy Agritel said.

 

"In the Black Sea zone, despite the return of regular rainfall, yield prospects are not improving because of irreversible damage caused by the dry March-April in the south of Ukraine and Russia."

 

In Poland, recent showers were seen boosting harvest prospects.

 

"After recent rains and low temperatures in the whole country the condition of grains is improving day by day and it looks like we will have a reasonable crop this year," one Polish trader said.

 

Polish export prices fell in the past week on reduced international demand.

 

Exporters were offering to pay around PLN890 a tonne (EUR197.6) for June delivery to port, down about PLN25 on the week.

 

However, a busy loading programme was continuing.

 

In the port of Gdynia, a vessel was loading 60,000 tonnes for Saudi Arabia and another was taking 27,000 tonnes for an undisclosed destination.

 

In Szczecin/Swinoujscie, a vessel is loading 28,000 tonnes, also for an unnamed destination.

 

Weekly EU data showed the bloc plus Britain had exported 30.74 million tonnes so far in 2019/20, up 63% from a year earlier.