Johannesburg - South African wheat fell for a second day after the Crop Estimates Committee raised its estimate for production of the cereal.
Wheat for delivery in December declined 0.5 percent to 3,665 rand a metric ton, falling the most since September 11 by the midday close on the South African Futures Exchange.
The nation’s wheat growers may harvest 1.79 million tons of the grain in the 2014 season, the Pretoria-based committee said yesterday.
It is more than the group’s August 27 forecast of 1.78 million tons.
While South Africa is the sub-Saharan region’s biggest producer of the grain after Ethiopia, it is still a net importer of wheat, according to the US Department of Agriculture.
White corn for delivery in December climbed 0.2 percent to settle at 1,792 rand a ton, the highest for that contract since September 29, while the yellow variety advanced 0.4 percent to 1,822 rand a ton.
South Africa uses white corn to make a staple food known locally as pap, while the yellow variety is mainly fed to animals. - Bloomberg News