EU wheat hovers near lows as high euro and hefty supply weigh

PARIS, Sept 29 (Reuters) - European wheat fell to near a contract low on Monday, pressured by a rise of the euro against the dollar and a global supply glut, while traders were assessing potentially lower-than-expected wheat exports from top competitor Russia.

Benchmark December milling wheat BL2Z5 on Paris-based Euronext closed down 0.5% at 188.50 euros ($221.05) a metric ton, near a low of 188.00 hit last week, seen as a support.

Chicago wheat Wv1 was up 0.2% by the same time.

The dollar eased against major currencies on Monday following a rally last week in the wake of a slew of stronger-than-expected U.S. economic data and ahead of a key report that could offer further clues on the Federal Reserve's policy path.

Meanwhile trade operators are trying to have a better picture of the state of crops in Russia, the world's largest wheat exporter.

Russia's government has decided to declare a federal level emergency in the agriculture sector of the southern Rostov region as bad weather has caused massive loss of crops, local authorities said over the weekend.

On Friday, consultancy Sovecon had made its first downgrade to its wheat export forecast for the 2025/26 season on Friday, cutting its projection by about 0.3 million tons to 43.4 million tons after July-September exports slowed by 29%.

Exports in the first six months of the season - usually the most active period when traders can ship grain without restrictions - would reach 23 million tons, well below an official projection of 33 million tons, it said.

Russian wheat shipments this month were down over 15% on the same period last year, it said on Monday