Wheat futures posted strong gains to end the week, boosted in part by wildly fluctuating weather conditions for the U.S. winter wheat crop on the southern Plains.
Forecasts call for unusually cold temperatures on the Plains Sunday through Monday, along with strong to extreme winds of up to 80 mph. However, the shot of cold air will be fleeting, with the potential for extreme heat and temperatures reaching 100 degrees F in some locations by the following weekend (March 21-22). Limited precipitation over the next 10 days is expected to raise further dryness concerns for the crop. Reports also attributed the strength in wheat to speculative buying ahead of the weekend. May Chicago was up 15 ¼ cents to $6.13 ¾, and May Kansas City added 16 ½ cents to $6.30. May Hard Red Spring gained 9 ¼ cents to $6.36, and May Minneapolis closed 11 cents higher at $6.45 ½.
Corn futures moved modestly higher as the market continued to draw strength from gains in crude oil. The advances in wheat were also supportive for corn. May was up 4 ¾ cents to $4.67 ¼, and December ended 1 ½ cents higher at $4.91 ½.
After hitting two-year highs on Thursday, the soybean market gave back part of those advances on what appeared to a round of profit-taking and consolidation ahead of the weekend. Futures had rallied sharply earlier in the week on Middle East tensions and higher crude oil, but by Friday traders appeared less willing to keep pushing prices higher. May beans slipped 2 cents to $12.25 ¼, and November lost 6 cents to $11.61 ½.
