Afternoon wheat: Markets bounce slightly in quiet, pre-hoiliday type trade
<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. The grain markets will reopen 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;\'>started the night slightly weaker, slipping to five lower before battling back. Over the final six hours of the night the market rallied thirteen cents with futures finishing the night seven higher. The market tried to extend gains early in the day but struggled, with futures unable to carry too far above $5.50 and trade reversed. By midday the market was trading only a penny higher, but futures bounced back a bit late in the day to finish almost six higher. </span><span style=\'font-family:\"Arial\",sans-serif;\'>KC May wheat gravitated lower during the first half of the night, falling to five lower, before a huge reversal move. Over the latter half of the night futures rallied 14 cents and finished seven higher. The market tried to extend gains early in the day but could only get to nine higher before reversing mid-morning. The break caught at two higher and trade firmed late in the day to finish five higher. </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;\'>USDA weekly export sales will be out in the morning. There were three announced sales last week, in total, 240 TMT of corn and 319 TMT of soybeans, of which 66 was new crop. There also was some Korean corn business around. Wheat sales were disappointing last week, coming in at a little over 100 TMT for each old crop and new crop. There were a few Global tenders around last week, and we may see some of our usual trade partners but not expecting a big week. Look for between 250 and 450 TMT combined.</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;\'>One day after the Argentine President’s administration let the peso weaken, which made Argentine exports more competitive, and following the Argentine President telling farmers their to seize the moment as they will only have the lower-than-normal export tariff through June, Ag trading houses sent requests to register 1.5 MMT of crop shipments in one day. That one-day amount is equal to about a third of the entire volume they requested to register this month through April 11.</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 AgriMer lowered their 2024/25 soft wheat export forecast for outside the EU by 100 TMT down to 3.1 MMT. They raised their forecast for soft wheat exports within the EU by 140 TMT up to 6.42 MMT. Following the changes, they lowered their soft wheat ending stocks forecast by 100 TMT down to 2.81 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;\'>India’s wheat procurement season continues, and thus far this year is off to a much better start to the prior few years with the Indian gov’t saying wheat stocks in gov’t reserves are at three- year highs, with wheat stocks as of April 1 being around 11.8 MMT, which would be 4 MMT larger than this time last year. The Indian gov’t is still aiming to buy well over 30 MMT from domestic farmers during its procurement season. </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;\'>EU data shows that as of April 13, cumulative year-to-date EU soft wheat exports (marketing year started July 1) are 16.67 MMT. Meaning, EU wheat exports over the past week were 310 TMT. This time last year, total EU wheat exports were 25.71 MMT. Some countries (France, Bulgaria and Ireland) continue to be slow in reporting and updating data in all markets. </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;\'>Algeria’s OAIC is thought to have bought between 570 and 600 TMT of opt origin soft milling wheat in an int’l tender that closed today. All purchases were said to be priced at $267.50/mt C&F. The origin of purchases were thought to be Black Sea, mainly Ukraine, Romania and Bulgaria. </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;\'>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 17 Tunisia is in for 75 TMT of opt origin milling soft wheat. </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 21 Syria is in for 100 TMT of soft milling wheat. This is one week earlier than previously.</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 22 Jordan is back in for 120 TMT of opt origin milling wheat. </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></div>