July rice drops as supply concern eases
by admin on May.16, 2008, under Export Import, Trade & Market
PARIS/SEOUL (Reuters) – July rice futures dropped more than 3 percent in early Asian trading on Thursday after falling by the same margin overnight as worries eased over the world’s supply of rice.
U.S. rice prices have been falling all week, with the July contract down 9 percent from Friday’s close, after the U.S. Department of Agriculture forecast a record world rice crop for 2008 and said stocks to grow.
Corn futures were weaker, pressured by improving U.S. weather conditions, which are set to boost corn seedings in the world’s largest corn exporter.
At the Chicago Board of Trade, July corn futures eased 0.5 percent to $5.93-1/2 per bushel by 5:20 a.m. EDT (0920 GMT) and September was off 0.4 percent at $6.05-3/4.
In Europe, grains and oilseed markets eased early but activity was very thin. Milling wheat futures were down a little over 1 percent. Maize (corn) and rapeseed were slightly weaker.
U.S. rice prices showed the most-actively traded front-month July contract down 2.8 percent, or 61 cents, to $20.88 per hundredweight to reflect eased concerns over global rice supply, which has been exacerbated last week by the Myanmar cyclone.
Back-months contracts, however, turned slightly higher as some buying interest emerged following the grain’s sharp fall for the past three consecutive sessions.
Soybean futures traded lower on hopes for a resumption in soy exports in Argentina, as striking Argentine farmers reiterated an offer to suspend their protest over an export tax hike if the government agrees to negotiate changes in the measure.
July soybeans fell 0.8 percent to $13.68-1/4 per bushel and the November contract shed 0.75 percent.
Rapeseed followed the fall with new crop benchmark November losing 0.8 percent at 442 euros a tonne.
Wheat futures traded mostly lower with the front-month July contract down 0.13 percent to $7.63 per bushel and September futures off 0.16 percent at $7.77.
Euronext milling wheat was mostly untraded. Benchmark November was off 3.00 euros at 189.50 euros a tonne on 466 lots traded.
(Reporting by Miyoung Kim and Sybille de La Hamaide; Editing by Peter Blackburn)