US wheat futures set contract lows on ample world inventories

CHICAGO, Aug 1 (Reuters) - U.S. wheat futures slid to contract lows on Friday due to plentiful global supplies, analysts said.

• New U.S. tariffs on dozens of trading partners made traders nervous at a time when harvests in the Northern Hemisphere were boosting inventories.

• French farmers had harvested 89% of this year's soft wheat crop by July 28, data from the farm office FranceAgriMer showed.

• The U.S. Department of Agriculture is slated to issue an update on the nation's spring wheat harvest in a weekly report on Monday. The harvest was 1% complete as of July 27.

• In Argentina, a major wheat exporter, recent rainfall improved soil moisture reserves for the 2025/26 wheat crop, according to the Buenos Aires Grains Exchange.

• In other news, consultancy Sovecon downgraded its forecast for Russia's 2025 wheat crop.

• CBOT September soft red winter wheat WU25 ended down 6-1/2 cents at $5.16-3/4 per bushel. The contract set a low of $5.16-1/4 a bushel earlier in the session.

• For the week, the contract tumbled 4%.

• K.C. September hard red winter wheat KWU25 closed down 7-1/2 cents at $5.18-3/4 a bushel. The market set lows for 2026 contracts.

• Minneapolis September spring wheat MWEU25 slipped 5-1/2 cents to finish at $5.72-1/4 a bushel. It set a contract low of $5.70-1/2 a bushel earlier in the session.