Good and bad wheat export news

Market Line August 7, 2009 Wheat futures saw hefty losses Wednesday with new contract lows posted at Chicago. The weekly export sales report for wheat came in better than expected at nearly 553-thousand metric tons but there was also news that Egypt purchased 210-thousand tonnes of wheat from France and Russia, none from the U.S. where prices were reported 13 dollars a ton higher.

News that nearly one million acres of southern Alberta wheat suffered hail damage didn’t help the market.

Louise Gartner for the Linn Group at the Chicago Board of Trade is not optimistic on wheat near term.

Gartner: “So the technical picture looks very weak. Looks like we started another major leg down in the wheat complex. You can get rallies but this long term bear market is going to be very difficult to sustain any kind of upward momentum.”

On Thursday Chicago September wheat was down 28 ½ cents at 5-00 ½.

September corn down 14 ½ cents at 3-32 ½. Portland soft white wheat 15-20 cents lower but mostly 4-95. Club wheat 6-95. HRW 11.5 % protein down 21-26 cents at 5-74. DNS 14% protein down 28 at 6-61. No Portland barley bids.

Cattle futures were lower Friday getting spillover pressure from hog futures and concern over cash fed prices. Even lower corn did not help feeder contracts. October live cattle down 70 cents at 89-12. October feeders down 15 at 101-22. September Class III milk up 25 cents at 12-44.

I’m Bob Hoff and that’s Market Line on the Northwest Ag Information Network.

Now this.