Chicago May wheat was down 4.3% at $388.37 a tonne after falling to its lowest since March 17. Soybeans for the same month lost 2.8% to US$611.5 and corn fell 0.7% to US$294.68.
Oil fell sharply as China’s financial hub Shanghai launched a lockdown to contain a surge in COVID-19 cases. The risk of a new economic shock due to the pandemic added more uncertainty to markets that have been dealing with Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
“The broad commodity sell-off continued into midday as fund managers react to the massive COVID lockdowns in China, as well as lingering hopes of success from Ukraine peace talks,” Arlan Suderman, chief commodity economist at StoneX, wrote in a note to clients.
Ukraine and Russia were preparing for the first face-to-face peace talks in more than two weeks, but a senior US official said Russian President Vladimir Putin appeared unwilling to make any concessions to end the war.
Ukrainian officials also downplayed the chances of a major breakthrough in the talks, which will be held in Istanbul.
CBOT wheat posted the biggest declines in percentage terms, on signs global importers have been able to find adequate supplies of wheat despite disruptions from the conflict between Russia and Ukraine.
France will ensure that Egypt, one of the main importers, receives the wheat it needs in the coming months, French Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire said.
Traders have exported the first supplies of Ukrainian maize to Europe by rail as the country’s seaports remain blocked due to the Russian invasion, agricultural consultancy APK-Inform said on Sunday.
Meanwhile, the focus was on spring planting in the northern hemisphere, with the war in Ukraine and global uncertainty over fertilizer supplies adding to the nervousness of traders.
Pending Thursday’s US Department of Agriculture (USDA) planting intentions report, analysts polled by Reuters expect US farmers on average to plant less corn and more soybeans this year.
The USDA will also estimate quarterly US grain stocks as of March 1.
Source: Ambito
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