Chicago wheat experienced a decline on Wednesday, retracting from two-month highs reached on Monday, as substantial exports of Russian wheat impacted market sentiment.
The most-active wheat on the Chicago Board of Trade fell by 0.4% to $5.99-3/4 a bushel at 0908 GMT, remaining below the $6 level after reaching a two-month high of $6.03-1/2 on Tuesday.
Meanwhile, corn remained unchanged at $4.52-1/2 a bushel, and soybeans fell by 0.04% to $11.81-1/2 a bushel, as market participants evaluated the potential impact of U.S. planting weather for the week.
Traders attributed the decline in wheat to profit-taking following recent highs, driven by a decrease in U.S. crop ratings and dry conditions affecting Russian crops.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s weekly crop progress report revealed a decline in the good-to-excellent condition of the U.S. winter wheat crop to 50%, down from 55% a week earlier.
Although dryness in south Russia and cold weather in western Europe have limited declines, attention has returned to the export competition from Russia. Russia’s Sovecon consultancy forecasted that Russia would export 4.6 million metric tons of wheat in April, only slightly down from 4.8 million tons in March and up from January and February shipments.
One German trader highlighted the continued competitiveness of Russian prices in export markets, along with the projection of substantial weekly wheat exports in April, indicating Russia’s significant wheat supplies despite its extensive exports so far this year.
Amid active shipments and an expansion of export quotas, Russian wheat export prices declined last week, although dry weather began to impact harvest forecasts.
While the U.S. corn planting pace is slightly better than expected, heavy rains in the central U.S. could potentially hinder progress later this week, as noted by analysts.