Afternoon wheat: Another slightly weaker performance
<div class=\"default-font-wrapper\" style=\"line-height: 1;font-size: 12pt; font-family: Verdana, Geneva, sans-serif;\"><p id=\"isPasted\" style=\'margin:0in;font-size:12pt;font-family:\"Times New Roman\",serif;text-align:justify;\'><strong><em><u><span style=\'font-family:\"Arial\",sans-serif;color:red;\'>Futures:</span></u></em></strong></p><p style=\'margin:0in;font-size:12pt;font-family:\"Times New Roman\",serif;text-align:justify;\'><span style=\'font-family:\"Arial\",sans-serif;\'>This is a shortened Holiday week in the US. After Thursday’s regular scheduled close at 1:20 pm CDT, there will be no grain trade Thursday night or all day on Friday in observance of Good Friday. After Thursday afternoon’s close, the grain markets will not reopen again until Sunday night at 7:00 pm CDT. </span></p><p style=\'margin:0in;font-size:12pt;font-family:\"Times New Roman\",serif;text-align:justify;\'><span style=\'font-family:\"Arial\",sans-serif;\'> </span></p><p style=\'margin:0in;font-size:12pt;font-family:\"Times New Roman\",serif;text-align:justify;\'><span style=\'font-family:\"Arial\",sans-serif;\'>Chicago May wheat </span><span style=\'font-family:\"Arial\",sans-serif;\'>battled both sides of unchanged through the night, starting a little weaker, rallying to three higher, only to set back and finish the night three lower. There was a brief bid at the start of the day that rallied futures a nickel, but within an hour the market had dropped ten cents to seven lower, and trade then spent the rest of the day bouncing between two and seven lower.</span><span style=\'font-family:\"Arial\",sans-serif;\'>KC May wheat battled both sides of unchanged through the night, starting a little weaker, rallying to two higher, only to unravel and finish the night almost six lower. The start of the day in KC was choppier than Chicago, with several three to five-cent swings during the opening hour before settling into only a four-cent trading range over the latter half of the day of between one and five lower. </span></p><p style=\'margin:0in;font-size:12pt;font-family:\"Times New Roman\",serif;text-align:justify;\'><span style=\'font-family:\"Arial\",sans-serif;\'> </span></p><p style=\'margin:0in;font-size:12pt;font-family:\"Times New Roman\",serif;text-align:justify;\'><strong><em><u><span style=\'font-family:\"Arial\",sans-serif;color:red;\'>Headline news:</span></u></em></strong><span style=\"color:black;\"> </span></p><p style=\'margin:0in;font-size:12pt;font-family:\"Times New Roman\",serif;text-align:justify;\'><span style=\'font-family:\"Arial\",sans-serif;\'>CBOT issued a notice declaring a condition of Force Majeure due to load-out impossibility at a majority of wheat regular shipping stations on the Ohio River. Such shipping stations are unable to load due to high water levels and/or flooding.</span></p><p style=\'margin:0in;font-size:12pt;font-family:\"Times New Roman\",serif;text-align:justify;\'><span style=\'font-family:\"Arial\",sans-serif;\'> </span></p><p style=\'margin:0in;font-size:12pt;font-family:\"Times New Roman\",serif;text-align:justify;\'><span style=\'font-family:\"Arial\",sans-serif;\'>Ukraine's President said Turkish, Ukraine, French and British representatives held talks about Black Sea security in Turkey today. No details yet from the meeting.</span></p><p style=\'margin:0in;font-size:12pt;font-family:\"Times New Roman\",serif;text-align:justify;\'><span style=\'font-family:\"Arial\",sans-serif;\'> </span></p><p style=\'margin:0in;font-size:12pt;font-family:\"Times New Roman\",serif;text-align:justify;\'><span style=\'font-family:\"Arial\",sans-serif;\'>Russia’s Federal State Statistic Service (Rosstat) said that as of April 1, Russian wheat stocks are 9.776 MMT, which is a third lower than year ago levels which were 14.582 MMT.</span></p><p style=\'margin:0in;font-size:12pt;font-family:\"Times New Roman\",serif;text-align:justify;\'><span style=\'font-family:\"Arial\",sans-serif;\'> </span></p><p style=\'margin:0in;font-size:12pt;font-family:\"Times New Roman\",serif;text-align:justify;\'><span style=\'font-family:\"Arial\",sans-serif;\'>The BAGE is forecasting 2025/26 Argentine wheat production of 20.5 MMT compared to 18.6 MMT the prior season thanks to favorable weather conditions and lower production costs. Acres are projected at 6.7 mil hectares. </span></p><p style=\'margin:0in;font-size:12pt;font-family:\"Times New Roman\",serif;text-align:justify;\'><span style=\'font-family:\"Arial\",sans-serif;\'> </span></p><p style=\'margin:0in;font-size:12pt;font-family:\"Times New Roman\",serif;text-align:justify;\'><span style=\'font-family:\"Arial\",sans-serif;\'>France’s Farms Ministry raised their 2025 Winter soft wheat planted area by 40 K hectares up to 4.61 mil hectares. However, the total durum wheat planted area is expected to fall 7% year-over-year to its lowest level in over 30 years. </span></p><p style=\'margin:0in;font-size:12pt;font-family:\"Times New Roman\",serif;text-align:justify;\'><span style=\'font-family:\"Arial\",sans-serif;\'> </span></p><p style=\'margin:0in;font-size:12pt;font-family:\"Times New Roman\",serif;text-align:justify;\'><span style=\'font-family:\"Arial\",sans-serif;\'>Kazakhstan aims to export at least 300 TMT of wheat to North African nations by the end of this marketing year (ends June 30) as the country tries to expand its market reach. </span></p><p style=\'margin:0in;font-size:12pt;font-family:\"Times New Roman\",serif;text-align:justify;\'><span style=\'font-family:\"Arial\",sans-serif;\'> </span></p><p style=\'margin:0in;font-size:12pt;font-family:\"Times New Roman\",serif;text-align:justify;\'><span style=\'font-family:\"Arial\",sans-serif;\'>Monday afternoon’s crop progress report showed overall Winter wheat crop conditions falling 1% week over week to 47% G&E and 19% P&VP (improved 2%), which was right in-line with trade expectations and compares to this time last year’s ratings of 55% G&E and 13% P&VP. Broken down, the HRW crop is rated 39% G&E (down 4%) and 24% P&VP (unch) and the SRW crop is rated 66% G&E (up 3%) and 4% P&VP (down 2). The crop is 8% headed, which compares to 10% this time last year and the five-year avg of 8%. Spring wheat planting moved up 4% to 7% complete, which was also in line with expectations.</span></p><p style=\'margin:0in;font-size:12pt;font-family:\"Times New Roman\",serif;text-align:justify;\'><span style=\'font-family:\"Arial\",sans-serif;\'> </span></p><p style=\'margin:0in;font-size:12pt;font-family:\"Times New Roman\",serif;\'><strong><em><u><span style=\'font-family:\"Arial\",sans-serif;color:red;\'>Export business around this week:</span></u></em></strong><span style=\"color:black;\"> </span></p><p style=\'margin:0in;font-size:12pt;font-family:\"Times New Roman\",serif;text-align:justify;\'><span style=\'font-family:\"Arial\",sans-serif;\'>Jordan bought 60 TMT of opt origin milling wheat (had been in for as much as 120 TMT), paying $263/mt C&F for LH Aug shipment. </span></p><p style=\'margin:0in;font-size:12pt;font-family:\"Times New Roman\",serif;text-align:justify;\'><span style=\'font-family:\"Arial\",sans-serif;\'> </span></p><p style=\'margin:0in;font-size:12pt;font-family:\"Times New Roman\",serif;text-align:justify;\'><span style=\'font-family:\"Arial\",sans-serif;\'>April 16 Algeria is in for a nominal 50 TMT of opt origin soft milling wheat, but they usually buy much more. The grain is for shipment in FH June and LH June. </span></p><p style=\'margin:0in;font-size:12pt;font-family:\"Times New Roman\",serif;text-align:justify;\'><span style=\'font-family:\"Arial\",sans-serif;\'> </span></p><span style=\'font-size:11pt;line-height:115%;font-family:\"Arial\",sans-serif;\'>April 21 Syria is in for 100 TMT of soft milling wheat. This is one week earlier than previously. </span></div>