South African maize and wheat futures ended firmer on Friday‚ tracking corn prices on the Chicago Board of Trade amid dry weather concerns in the US.
The near-dated July white maize contract was up R74.20 at R2‚536.20 a ton and the September white maize contract added R69 to R2‚569 a ton. December white maize gained R76 to R2‚621 a ton.
The near-dated July yellow maize contract added R82 to R2‚500 and the September yellow maize contract gained R80 to R2‚526 a ton. The December yellow maize contract was up R78 to R2‚564 a ton.
The July wheat contract added R97 to R3‚489 a ton‚ the September wheat contract gained R100 to R3‚534 a ton‚ and the December wheat contract was up R100 at R3‚402 a ton.
“We don’t see massive reductions in corn prices in the near term until the dry‚ hot weather in the US improves drastically. The situation will continue to weigh on local maize prices‚” said Johann Theron‚ market analyst at RMB.
The US agriculture department on Wednesday slashed its forecast for this year’s corn harvest‚ projecting that the crop was no longer likely to set a record because of worsening drought in the Midwest. - I-Net Bridge