Futures Close Report: 3rd July 2017

US markets continued to firm on back of weather and post USDA trade squaring up ahead of the 4th July national holiday in the US.  EU markets will therefore be waiting until Wednesday to fully gauge direction once the US is back to work.

Weather reports for the US appear more favourable with Midwest expecting rains this week.  However, hot and dry conditions are forecast to intensify in the northern Plains spring wheat belt,  causing further damage to the milling wheat crops.

Floods have slowed corn harvesting in some parts of Argentina but the crop losses being reported in waterlogged fields have been made up for by higher-than expected yields countrywide. With 51 percent of the 2016/17 crop collected, the Buenos Aires Grains Exchange expects a record 39 million tonne crop with nationwide yields averaging 8.5 tonnes per hectare.

Russian wheat export prices have risen for a seventh week on the back of higher global benchmarks, lifted by concerns of crop losses due to bad weather. SovEcon, put Black Sea new crop prices for supply in July-August at $184-187 per tonne, compared to $183-186 a tonne a week earlier.