By Kirk Maltais


--Wheat for September delivery rose 5% to $6.73 1/2 a bushel, on the Chicago Board of Trade on Wednesday, snapping a seven session losing streak as prices for wheat exports trend higher.

--Corn for December delivery rose 0.2% to $4.94 1/4 a bushel.

--Soybeans for November delivery fell 0.2% to $13.50 1/2 a bushel.


HIGHLIGHTS


Back on the Upswing: Increasingly high bids for wheat exports from growers like Russia and the EU supported CBOT wheat futures. Prices for French wheat rose by roughly $11 a metric ton to $252 a ton in June, according to SovEcon in a note. Prices for Russian wheat also rose, by $8 a ton to $231.50 a ton in June. "The drop in export wheat taxes in June, following the introduction of a new calculation formula, has further supported Russian wheat bids," said the firm.

Snapped Streak: Before today, the continuous wheat contract on the CBOT finished lower for the past seven trading sessions. That streak ended today - with traders seeing the turnaround as simply a technical response to the losing streak, in which wheat shed nearly 15%. However, overly wet weather in some growing areas was also a pressure point. "Wheat harvest will be hampered by heavy rainfall across the winter wheat plains, which will slow harvest and potentially hurt the quality of the wheat crop," said Brian Hoops of Midwest Market Solutions.


INSIGHT


Firming Up: The crop quality of the U.S. corn crop has inched higher in the past week, according to the latest crop progress report from the USDA. The USDA puts the amount of corn in good or excellent condition at 51%, up 1 point from the previous week. Soybean conditions fell 1 point to 50% good or excellent, and wheat conditions dropped 2 points to 48% good or excellent. The steady conditions are seen as less than expected in the midst of increased rainfall, providing support for futures.

Brighter Future: U.S. farmers are growing more optimistic about the agricultural market, with a growing share of them expecting an improved financial outlook for their own farms through the rest of this year into 2024. "Optimism about U.S. agriculture's future and a more sanguine interest rate outlook help explain producers' more positive view of the future expressed in June's survey," said James Mintert, head investigator for the Purdue University/CME Group Ag Barometer.


AHEAD


--The EIA will release its weekly ethanol production and stocks report at 11 a.m. ET Thursday.

--The USDA will release its weekly export sales report at 8:30 a.m. ET Friday.

--The USDA will release its weekly grains export inspections report at 11 a.m. ET Monday.

--The USDA will release its weekly crop progress report at 4 p.m. ET Monday.


Write to Kirk Maltais at kirk.maltais@wsj.com


(END) Dow Jones Newswires

07-05-23 1515ET