Wheat futures experienced a recovery from earlier declines, resulting in a mixed closing across three major trading exchanges. On the Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT), soft red winter (SRW) wheat futures fell between 2 to 4 cents by the end of trading. Meanwhile, Kansas City’s hard red winter (HRW) wheat contracts managed to gain slightly, with increases of up to 2 cents. In contrast, the Minneapolis Grain Exchange (MPLS) saw spring wheat contracts decline by 1 to 2 cents on Thursday.
In recent news, President Trump announced new tariffs, notably excluding Mexico and Canada from the list, while maintaining exemptions for all goods compliant with the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA). These reciprocal tariffs will see Japan imposing a 24% tariff, South Korea a 25% tariff, and the Philippines a 17% tariff, all set to take effect on April 9.
According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA)’s Export Sales report, total wheat sales for the week ending March 27 reached 339,986 metric tons (MT), surpassing market expectations that predicted either a reduction of 100,000 MT or new sales between 0 to 300,000 MT. This marks the highest sales volume in three weeks and significantly exceeds figures from the corresponding week last year. The largest buyer was Ecuador, which purchased 71,900 MT, followed closely by Japan with 59,300 MT. New crop sales accounted for 95,242 MT, aligning well within the predicted range of 0 to 200,000 MT.
Census data reveals that U.S. wheat exports in February totaled 1.765 million metric tons (MMT), equivalent to approximately 64.85 million bushels (mbu). This figure represents a 34.37% increase compared to January, although it is a 4.47% decrease from the previous year. Across the first three quarters of the marketing year, exports amount to 584 mbu (or 598 mbu when including wheat products).
In terms of trading prices, the closed figures on May 25 for various wheat futures were as follows:
– CBOT Wheat: May contracts settled at $5.36, down 3.25 cents, while July contracts ended at $5.50, down 2.75 cents.
– Kansas City Board of Trade (KCBT) Wheat: May contracts closed at $5.69, with an uptick of 0.5 cents; July contracts were at $5.80 3/4, showing an increase of 1 cent.
– Minneapolis Grain Exchange (MGEX) Wheat: May contracts finished at $5.91 1/4, down 1.25 cents, and July contracts closed at $6.07, down 1 cent.
In summary, the wheat market is navigating through a landscape influenced by various economic indicators, including export data and tariff impacts. Traders and industry participants continue to monitor these developments closely as they make strategic decisions regarding wheat futures and overall market positioning.
