U.S. wheat, corn futures move further off multi-month lows

Investing.com - U.S. wheat and corn futures extended gains from the previous session on Thursday, as investors returned to the market to seek cheap valuations in wake of recent losses which took prices to the lowest level in six months earlier in the week.

On the Chicago Mercantile Exchange, US wheat for July delivery tacked on 4.03 cents, or 0.83%, to trade at $4.8762 a bushel during U.S. morning hours.

On Wednesday, wheat jumped 7.2 cents, or 1.52%, to close at $4.8340 as a round of bargain buying and short covering kicked off.

Wheat slumped to a contract-low of $4.6400 on Tuesday as forecasts for crop-friendly weather in key U.S. wheat-growing states weighed. Wheat is on track to post a loss of 5% in April.

According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, 55% of the spring wheat crop was planted as of April 26, up from 36% a week earlier. Only 17% of the crop was planted in the same week a year earlier, while the five-year average for this time of year is 29%.

The agency also said that the U.S. winter wheat crop was rated 42% good to excellent as of last week. Approximately 33% of the crop was in good to excellent condition in the same week a year earlier.

Meanwhile, US corn for July delivery inched up 1.77 cents, or 0.48%, to trade at $3.6938 a bushel. A day earlier, corn advanced 3.2 cents, or 0.89%, to close at $3.6760.

Corn fell to $3.6240 on Tuesday, the weakest level since November 5, amid indications of rapid planting progress in the U.S. Midwest last week. Corn is down around 2% so far this month.

The USDA said that approximately 19% of the corn crop was planted as of last week, up from just 9% in the preceding week.

Nearly 17% of the crop was planted during the same week a year earlier, while the five-year average for this time of year is 25%.

Elsewhere on the Chicago Board of Trade, US soybeans for July delivery increased 2.92 cents, or 0.3%, to trade at $9.9112 a bushel after hitting an intraday peak of $9.9300, the most since March 13.

Prices of the oilseed jumped 10.6 cents, or 1.1%, to settle at $9.8800 on Wednesday amid concerns over U.S. crop prospects and indications of robust demand for U.S. supplies.

According to the USDA, only 2% of the soybean crop was planted as of last week, compared to the 3% planted in the same week a year earlier. The five-year average for this time of year is 4%.

Optimism over the outlook for supplies in South America weighed. Brazil and Argentina are major soybean exporters and compete with the U.S. for business on the global market.

Large South American crop prospects could weigh on demand for U.S. supplies.

Corn is the biggest U.S. crop, followed by soybeans, government figures show. Wheat was fourth, behind hay.