Wheat Up as U.S. Crop Condition Worsens
November 24 2020 - 3:53PM
Dow Jones News
By Kirk Maltais
--Wheat for March delivery rose 2.2% to $6.17 1/2 a bushel, on
the Chicago Board of Trade Tuesday, in reaction to the USDA
reporting a decline in the condition of U.S. winter wheat.
--Soybeans for January delivery were unchanged at $11.91 1/4 a
bushel.
--Corn for March delivery fell 0.2% to $4.32 1/2 a bushel.
HIGHLIGHTS
Dry Run: The state of U.S. winter wheat being in good or
excellent condition dropped 3 points in the past week to 43%,
according to the USDA. The main problem for the U.S. wheat crop is
Texas, where only 24% of its crop is in good/excellent condition.
The decline in crop condition comes amid dry weather throughout the
world, which is expected to lift prices going forward.
Dreams of Drumsticks: Grains traders sold today as the
Thanksgiving holiday approaches, said Dan Hueber of the Hueber
Report. "It is difficult to chalk it up to anything more than
pre-holiday profit-taking, " said Mr. Hueber. "When you have
markets that have been advancing for more than 14 weeks and sitting
in very overbought technical positions, one should never assume
that it could not be the beginning of something more
significant."
INSIGHTS
Scorching Start: The pre-holiday correction in grains futures
today isn't expected to extend long past the holiday, with South
American weather still hot and dry with little signs of letting up.
"By far, 2020 is one of the worst starts for a South America
growing season in modern history," said AgResource. "Any CBOT break
should be modest and of short duration."
High Times: Agricultural commodity markets are set to begin 2021
with high prices and a range of factors likely to hike them even
further, according to Rabobank's annual outlook. "The fallout from
the Covid-19 pandemic, which saw countries across the world
stockpile goods, along with expected poor harvests due to dry
weather conditions, are set to increase agri-commodity prices." It
forecasts the strongest upside potential in soybeans, corn and
wheat. However, Stefan Vogel, global strategist and head of
agri-commodity markets at Rabobank notes that 2021 does bring its
own risks, such as a continuation of Covid-19 pressures and La
Nina.
AHEAD
--The Chicago Board of Trade will be closed in observance of
Thanksgiving on Thursday. It will close early on Friday, reopening
at its regular schedule next week.
--Grains and livestock trading on the Chicago Board of Trade
will close at 1:05 p.m. ET Friday.
--The USDA releases its weekly grain export inspections data at
11 a.m. ET Monday.
--The USDA releases its monthly agricultural prices report at 3
p.m. ET Monday.
--The USDA releases its weekly crop progress report for the
2020/21 crop at 4 p.m. ET Monday.
Lucy Craymer contributed to this article.
Write to Kirk Maltais at kirk.maltais@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
November 24, 2020 15:38 ET (20:38 GMT)
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