13/07/07--LIFFE Wheat Review: Futures Mostly Flat, Nearby Weather Favours Harvest

LONDON (Dow Jones)--London wheat futures traded on Liffe finished mostly steady to narrowly mixed Friday with traders waiting for more definitive crop results as harvest nearby weather improves.

London November feed wheat finished up GBP0.10, or 0.1%, at GBP118.85/ton, with 74 lots moved.

"Finally the weather is sunny in France," said a grain trader. "In the center-west of France, they just started the wheat harvest."

Hot, dry and windy weather forecast for the next three days is expected to kick start some harvesting of barley, wheat and rapeseed in France and Germany. Since early June wet weather has hindered harvest progress.

French farmers, able to get into the fields, are expected to work through Bastille Day celebrations and even combine wetter-than-normal grain to move it from the field. They don't want to risk leaving it out in case more rain falls, another France-based trader said.

Forecasters at T-Storm predict thunderstorms to cross the major European Union wheat areas early next week, but they don't expect rainfall to be heavy. However, they also forecast increasing chances for rainfall late next week.

The market is eager to know crop results, as rain on ripe grain can lower quality specifications and yields.

Early indications suggest the E.U. barley crop has suffered both from April's dry, hot conditions and then rain at harvest. But due to the different levels of maturation between the crops, many question how much of the same effect will be seen in wheat.

"Early winter barley harvest results in France and Germany indicate lower yields in both countries," said the U.K.'s Home-Grown Cereals Authority in report.

"The German harvest was halted last week by constant rains, and several dry days are required before harvest can restart," the HGCA report said.

In the French cash market, new-crop standard wheat at the port of Rouen was down EUR2 at EUR177/ton to EUR1780/ton for July/December delivery.

On the week U.K. delivered bread and feed wheat prices were unchanged to up GBP3.50/ton.

In other Euronext.liffe agricultural markets, November corn ended down EUR1 at EUR185.50/ton, with 103 lots moved.