COM - Wheat falls to 18-month lows soybeans edge higher after USDA report

2023-03-08 17:38:23 ET

Chicago wheat futures tumbled again to 18-month lows and corn fell sharply Wednesday, as the latest WASDE report from the U.S. Department of Agriculture failed to spark an expected rebound .

Wheat ( W_1:COM ) for May delivery finished -1.5% to $6.87 1/2 a bushel on the Chicago Board of Trade, after dipping to $6.84 1/4, the lowest price on a continuous chart of the most-active wheat contract since September 14, 2021.

Also, CBOT corn ( C_1:COM ) for May delivery closed -1.4% to $6.25 1/2 a bushel, while May soybeans ( S_1:COM ) settled +0.2% at $15.17 3/4 per bushel.

ETFs: ( NYSEARCA: WEAT ), ( CORN ), ( SOYB ), ( DBO ), ( MOO )

The latest monthly World Agricultural Supply and Demand Estimates report raised its 2022-23 wheat production estimates for Kazakhstan, Australia and India, with production in Kazakhstan forecast at 16.4M metric tons, which the report said would be the largest harvest since the 2011-12 marketing year.

The WASDE report also cut the estimate for Argentina's soybean production by 8M metric tons to 33M, citing "dry and hot weather conditions."

The grains market is betting on another extension of the deal allowing shipments from Black Sea ports in Ukraine, weighing on futures for wheat and corn, the top two crops shipped through the Black Sea corridor.

There's "lots of volatility ahead" for wheat prices, Andrew Hecht writes in an analysis published on Seeking Alpha .

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