On the Chicago Mercantile Exchange, wheat for December delivery settled at USD8.8863 a bushel by close of trade on Friday. The December wheat contract rose 2.4% on the week.
Prices rallied to a three-week high of USD9.1450 a bushel on Thursday, as market participants looked ahead to a meeting of the Russian Agricultural Ministry on Friday, amid growing fears the country will implement a limit on grain exports.
But futures lost nearly 2% Friday after Russia’s Deputy Prime Minister Arkady Dvorkovich said the country will not limit grain exports even if its exportable surplus is exhausted.
"We consider any export restrictions harmful. We will use the instruments we have - market interventions and information exchange with market participants," Dvorkovich said.
"As long as I am in charge of this sector, I will be against any export restrictions," he added.
In 2010, Russia barred grain exports amid a severe drought.
Russia is a major wheat exporter and competes with the U.S. for business on the global market. A disruption to exports from the country could boost demand for U.S. supplies, which is the world’s third largest wheat producer and biggest exporter.
Elsewhere on the Chicago Board of Trade, soybeans for November delivery settled at USD17.5437 a bushel by close of trade Friday. November soy prices added 0.95% on the week.
On Thursday, the November futures hit a session high of USD17.7062 a bushel, just below the all-time high of USD17.7762 a bushel hit on July 20.
Soy futures have gained sharply in recent weeks, as the same hot, dry weather that boosted corn buoyed soy futures as well. Soybeans are grown in many of the same regions across the U.S. as corn.
Weekly data from the U.S. Department of Agriculture released earlier in the week showed that U.S. soy crop conditions remain at the lowest levels since 1988 for this time of year.
Ongoing expectations that global demand for U.S. soybeans will remain strong in the near-term further supported the oilseed.
Weekly export data from the USDA released Thursday showed that U.S. farmers sold 721,400 tonnes of soybeans last week, above market expectations for exports of 700,000 tonnes.
Meanwhile, corn futures for December delivery settled at USD7.9975 a bushel by close of trade on Friday. On the week, December corn prices dipped 0.4%.
Prices touched a record high of USD8.4237 a bushel on August 10.
Corn prices came under pressure Friday, tracking wheat prices lower. Wheat and corn prices are linked because both can be used as animal feed.
Market players will continue to monitor U.S. crop conditions in the week ahead amid concerns over the impact of the worst drought in at least 56 years on crops in the U.S. Midwest and Great Plains-region.
Escalating concerns over the impact of scorching heat and dry weather in those regions fuelled a furious rally in grain prices over the past two months.
Corn prices have surged nearly 55% during the period, wheat futures soared approximately 40%, while soy prices added 30%.
Grains traders will also focus on the USDA’s weekly crop progress report on Monday, as well as Thursday’s weekly exports data.
Corn and soybean traders will continue to pay close attention to weather forecasts for the U.S. Midwest and Great Plains-region, while wheat traders will monitor crop conditions in Russia.
Chicago Board of Trade grain futures markets will be closed on Monday, September 3 for the U.S. Labor Day Holiday.
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