Winter wheat on Friday climbed higher for a fourth straight day as a deep freeze across the US grain belt escalates concern about shrinking crops.
The extreme cold snap is putting recently planted wheat in danger of winterkill, which can occur when soil lacking enough snow protection can grow cold enough to kill off the plant.
Grains in some key areas already are the focus of worry over ongoing drought.
“The cold weather could produce some winterkill in US production areas to make a small crop even smaller,” said Jack Scoville, vice president of Chicago brokerage Price Futures Group.
Record-cold temperatures are striking as the Russia-Ukraine war continues to limit farm exports from two of the world’s top grain shippers.
Corn and soybeans in South America are also in focus amid weather woes in the region, while delayed harvests in Brazil and Thailand fuel higher sugar prices. The supply issues raise the prospect of more food inflation next year.
The Bloomberg Agriculture Spot Index was heading for third weekly gain as of Thursday, with most markets extending gains on Friday. That would be the longest streak of weekly gains since May.
Hard red winter wheat futures rose for a fourth day in Chicago, the longest such streak since August. The most-active futures contract is poised to end the week up 3.6 percent, the biggest jump since late September.
Benchmark Chicago wheat rose as much as 2 percent to US$7.7775 a bushel on Friday, the highest since Dec. 2. The futures reached a second straight week of gains.
Corn and soybeans in Chicago also gained as dry weather and rising temperatures are poised to return in Argentina today, further stressing crops.
Raw sugar climbed higher for a sixth straight trading day on tight global supplies amid slower-than-expected global harvests.
Other commodities:
‧ Gold for Gold for February delivery rose US$8.90 to US$1,804.20 an ounce, up 0.22 percent for the week.
‧ Silver for March delivery rose US$0.30 to US$23.92 an ounce, up 2.53 percent weekly.
‧ Copper for March delivery rose US$0.05 to US$3.81 per pound, recording a 1.33 percent increase for the week.
Additional reporting by AP
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