CBOT Wheat Falls Due to Long Liquidation

241

On May 25th, Wednesday, the CBOT (Chicago Board of Trade) soft red winter wheat futures market closed sharply lower, with the benchmark contract down 2.70%, mainly due to long liquidation. The most active July contract traded between 602.25 cents and 624.50 cents. Following a survey of wheat crops in Illinois, the Illinois Wheat Association predicts a yield of 97.12 bushels per acre for soft red winter wheat, far above the USDA’s forecast of 78 bushels. If this prediction becomes a reality, it would set a new record of 79 bushels per acre. On Wednesday, the estimated trading volume for wheat futures was 94,769 contracts, up from 85,777 contracts the previous trading day. Open interest was 379,453 contracts, compared to 377,522 contracts the previous day.