EU wheat hovers near contract low with exports in focus

PARIS, Nov 27 (Reuters) - Benchmark Euronext wheat futures hovered close to a contract low on Thursday as stiff export competition hung over a market lacking usual impetus due to a U.S. holiday.

March wheat BL2H6, the most active contract on Paris-based Euronext, was up 0.1% at 190.50 euros ($220.90) a metric ton by 1618 GMT in light volumes.

It held just above a contract low of 189.75 euros from mid-October that it had equalled earlier this week.

Chart floors on Euronext, and a higher close in Chicago on Wednesday before the Thanksgiving holiday, helped underpin the European market.

But abundant supply in other exporting zones was keeping the focus on export competition, with west European wheat vying with traditional Black Sea rivals like Russia and southern hemisphere supplier Argentina.

"MATIF (Euronext) wheat repeatedly tested support as large EU crops and steady Black Sea flows weighed on fundamentals," British merchant ADM Agriculture said in a note.

A rally in the euro against the dollar this week has created further pressure on west European prices. FRX/

Russian 11.5% protein wheat for December shipment to Egypt was around $246-$247 a ton cost and freight included (c&f), according to traders. French and Ukrainian wheat were similar at around $249-$250 a ton c&f, with Romanian about $251 a ton c&f.

“Russia has a price lead in Egypt while Argentine new crop wheat is the cheapest in the world, with attractive price offers being made for Argentine wheat in Asia,” one German trader said.

In France, export loadings this week included a cargo of 65,000 tons of wheat for Egypt and 66,000 tons of barley for Saudi Arabia, LSEG data showed. GRAIN/SHP/FR

Strong international demand has eroded availability of barley, pushing up prices, as shown by results of a Tunisian import tender on Thursday.

In corn, cheap offers of U.S. supplies to big importers in Spain were reported against a backdrop of slow shipments from Ukraine due to a rain-disrupted harvest and Russian attacks on infrastructure.

“U.S. corn was offered heavily to Spain this week, U.S. corn is now cheaper than Ukrainian which is the main competitor in Spain,” another trader said.

U.S. corn was offered to Spain this week at around $242-$244 a ton c&f for December/January shipment, or about $3 under Ukrainian prices.

($1 = 0.8624 euros)