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Wheat Faces Biggest Weekly Drop In 1 Year, Corn Down For Fifth Week

By Dayeeta Das
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Wheat Faces Biggest Weekly Drop In 1 Year, Corn Down For Fifth Week

Chicago wheat ticked higher on Friday with bargain-buying supporting prices, though the market is poised for its biggest weekly loss in more than a year on expectations of bumper global supplies.

Corn is on track for its fifth week of decline, while soybeans are down for a second week on forecasts of an all-time high US output.

"We think there could easily be 30-50 cents more downside to US wheat futures between now and September," said Ole Houe, director of advisory services at agriculture brokerage IKON Commodities in Sydney. "The supply-and-demand situation is heavier than the last two years."

The most-active wheat contract on the Chicago Board Of Trade is down more than 5% this week, the market's biggest weekly loss since early March 2019.

Wheat gained 0.3% at $5.02-1/2 a bushel by 02:46 GMT after closing down 1.9% on Thursday.

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Corn has lost more than 1% this week, while soybeans are down more than 1.7%.

Wheat Harvest Outlook

Ukrainian ProAgro consultancy on Thursday increased its 2020 wheat harvest outlook for Ukraine to 26.59 million tonnes from 26.07 million tonnes. It also bumped up its wheat export forecast for the country by 600,000 tonnes.

Canadian farmers are on track to harvest a record-large all-wheat crop mainly due to favourable crop conditions, farmer advisory service FarmLink Marketing Solutions estimated.

Forecasts of record US corn and soybean production are weighing on prices.

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The US Agriculture Department on Thursday morning confirmed private sales of 126,000 tonnes of US soybeans to China for delivery in the 2020/21 marketing year.

Brazil is expected to export 80 million tonnes of soybeans next year, out of a total harvest of 130.5 million tonnes, according to an initial forecast from local soybean traders association Abiove on Thursday.

Commodity funds were net sellers of CBOT wheat, soybeans and soymeal futures contracts on Thursday and net buyers of corn and soyoil, traders said.

News by Reuters, edited by ESM. Click subscribe to sign up to ESM: European Supermarket Magazine.

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