Pre-Opening Wheat Market Report for 10/26/2010
Related Keywords: Agriculture Email Print | December wheat was 1 1/2 cents lower overnight. The dollar was modestly higher. December wheat traded near unchanged in a very narrow range overnight in the face of outside market forces that were considered slightly negative. This comes on a slow day, and what may be a slow week, for news. A cold front is expected to push down into the Midwest today to as low as the Ohio Valley. This may bring scattered light to moderate showers totaling 1/4 to 3/4 inches. The soft red winter wheat belt in the Midwest remains in need of more substantial moisture after disappointing precipitation over the weekend. In the Black Sea region, showers in Russia and in northern and western areas of Ukraine have helped to replenish soil moisture in winter grain areas. More showers in the south are expected to bring further improvement as the crop nears the dormancy period for winter wheat. This week’s Crop Progress report from the USDA showed the US winter wheat crop at 88% planted compared to 80% last week and 77% last year. The 10 year average for this time of year is 84%. The highest percent complete was 90% in 1987. Winter wheat is 64% emerged versus 51% last week and a 5-year average at 64%. However, the crop is rated at only 47% good/excellent in the season’s first weekly quality rating. This compares to 62% good/excellent at this point last year. The 10 year average for this time of year is 64%. This week’s export inspections, out yesterday, were 21.5 million bushels, up slightly from 21.2 million last week. Inspections need to average 25 million bushels each week to reach the USDA’s current export projection. Cumulative inspections stand at 36.1% of the USDA’s projection versus a 5-year average of 43.8%. Ukraine’s farm minister said yesterday that his country would swap corn for Russian milling wheat in a measure that would help Russia replenish its feed grain stocks. Traders in Europe report that a mill in Oman is tendering for 60,000 tonnes of wheat.