* Corn, wheat hit three-month lows on better weather
* Soy declines more than 1 percent
* Firmer dollar, lower equities add pressure
(Recasts to open of U.S. trading, adds new quotes, changes
byline, dateline, previously HAMBURG/SINGAPORE)
By Michael Hirtzer
CHICAGO, April 18 (Reuters) – U.S. grain futures tumbled on
W ednesday, with wheat and corn each falling to a three-month
low, in tandem with many other commodities as investors cut
their exposure in risk assets in favor of safe havens like the
dollar.
Grains were under additional pressure from good crop weather
in the United States raising prospects for ample supplies in the
world’s top exporter of corn, soybeans and wheat.
Soybean futures slumped 1 percent, heading for their biggest
daily decline in a month, amid a broad sell-off that saw crude
oil, gold and equities all losing ground.
“The dollar is slightly higher and these outside markets are
weaker. Now that we saw the corn planting progress and the wheat
conditions, it reinforces the idea that every day we are
marching closer to a big crop,” said Don Roose, analyst at U.S.
Commodities in West Des Moines, Iowa.
“The corn market is trying to find support but these
old-crop premiums look lofty if we are going to get a big
new-crop supply,” Roose added.
The U.S. Agriculture Department late Tuesday confirmed that
corn plantings were progressing at nearly a record rate while
conditions of the U.S. winter wheat crop also jumped.
Spring wheat plantings were also advancing at a record rate,
with spring wheat futures leading the decline among U.S. wheat
varieties.
Benchmark Chicago Board of Trade wheat was down 5-1/4
cents at $6.10-1/4 cents, a drop of about 1 percent after
earlier hitting the lowest level since Jan. 20. Spring wheat
futures fell 1.1 percent at the Minneapolis Grain
Exchange.
CBOT May corn was down 2 percent, or 12-1/4 cents, at
$6.04-1/2, briefly falling below the psychological benchmark of
$6 per bushel for the first time since late January, while CBOT
May soybeans were off 18-1/2 cents at $14.07-1/4.
Old-crop corn supplies are expected to shrink to the lowest
levels in 16 years by the end of the summer, but farmers are
forecast to plant the largest corn area since 1944, which will
help replenish grain stockpiles.
“Ag markets are floundering under weight of favorable
weather, huge row crop fund laws and negative chart action,”
R.J. O’Brien analyst Rich Feltes said in a note to client.
Rains were forecast for Wednesday through Saturday in the
U.S. Midwest and will slow corn seedings, though plantings were
already well ahead of the average pace.
“It will slow down plantings, not a perfect forecast but
certainly not a disaster,” said John Dee, meteorologist for
Global Weather Monitoring.
Rains will begin in the north on Wednesday, spread to the
western Midwest by Thursday, and move into the eastern Midwest
on Friday and Saturday.
Prices at 10:17 a.m. CDT (1517 GMT)
LAST NET PCT YTD
CHG CHG CHG
CBOT corn 604.50 -12.25 -2.0% -6.5%
CBOT soy 1407.25 -18.50 -1.3% 17.4%
CBOT meal 387.60 -6.20 -1.6% 25.3%
CBOT soyoil 55.37 -0.39 -0.7% 6.3%
CBOT wheat 610.25 -5.25 -0.9% -6.5%
CBOT rice 1548.50 -8.50 -0.6% 6.0%
EU wheat 213.75 2.00 0.9% 5.6%
US crude 102.66 -1.53 -1.5% 3.9%
Dow Jones 13,051 -65 -0.5% 6.8%
Gold 1643.11 -5.87 -0.4% 5.1%
Euro/dollar 1.3112 -0.0015 -0.1% 1.3%
Dollar Index 79.5920 0.1160 0.2% -0.7%
Baltic Freight 1006 17 1.7% -42.1%
(Additional reporting by Sam Nelson in Chicago; Editing by
David Gregorio)
