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Exports Lift Wheat Futures

Posted on: Wednesday, 29 March 2006, 12:00 CST

By Victoria Sizemore Long, The Kansas City Star, Mo.

Mar. 29--Kansas City and Chicago wheat closed higher Tuesday, helped partly by fresh export business.

Chicago corn and soybeans finished mixed.

Kansas City Value Line stock index futures declined.

Wheat futures turned firm after early declines. The gains came as the market recovered from recent declines and on news of U.S. sales of wheat to Iraq. Iraq on Tuesday announced the purchase of 450,000 metric tons of wheat from the U.S., 500,000 metric tons from Australian firms and 150,000 metric tons from Germany to complete a 1.6 million-metric-ton tender issued in January.

Early losses in wheat were linked to improved growing conditions for the hard red winter wheat crop. Meteorologists said that recent rains have improved conditions of the U.S. winter wheat crop but that more is needed. Long-range forecasts suggest additional chances for rain.

Meanwhile, the U.S. Department of Agriculture on Monday said 26 percent of the hard red winter wheat crop in Kansas, the leading U.S. producer, was in good to excellent condition, up from 24 percent a week ago.

Corn futures finished mixed, getting some support from a technical rebound after recent losses. However, overall fundamentals remained bearish.

Meteorologists said soil moisture reserves in the Midwest have improved after recent rains, boosting prospects for a quick start of the U.S. planting season.

Meanwhile, there was market talk that European Union production of compound animal feed this year could fall by up to 4 percent because of poor consumer demand for poultry after the recent spate of bird flu outbreaks.

Soybean futures also finished mixed, getting support in a technical recovery from recent weakness. But pressure continued from overall bearish fundamentals -- improved planting conditions, abundant stocks of vegetable oils and the advancing harvest of a large South American soybean crop.

To reach Victoria Sizemore Long, call (816) 234-4374 or send e-mail to vlong@kcstar.com .

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Copyright (c) 2006, The Kansas City Star, Mo.

Distributed by Knight Ridder/Tribune Business News.

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Source: The Kansas City Star (Kansas City, Missouri)

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