Mumbai, 24 May (Commoditiescontrol): Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT) wheat futures continued to climb on Friday, setting the stage for the largest weekly increase in a month. The rise is driven by fears of crop losses in the Black Sea region and other major exporting countries. The most-active CBOT wheat contract increased by 0.4% to $7.01 a bushel, marking a 7.6% gain for the week.
Reduced forecasts for Russia's wheat production have sparked a rally, pushing wheat prices to their highest level in 10 months. Adverse weather conditions in other key wheat-producing nations such as Ukraine, Australia, France, and Germany have exacerbated concerns.
On Thursday, the International Grains Council (IGC) cut its 2024/25 global wheat production forecast, particularly downgrading the outlook for Russia and Ukraine. The IGC's monthly update reduced the global wheat crop outlook by 3 million metric tons to 795 million tons.
Germany's wheat crop is expected to decrease by 5.6% this year to 20.31 million metric tons, according to the latest harvest estimate by the country's association of farm cooperatives. This continues a trend of reduced crop forecasts.
Despite these bullish factors, commodity funds were net sellers of CBOT wheat futures on Thursday, traders reported.
(By Commoditiescontrol Bureau: 09820130172)