CBOT wheat up on war premium, short-covering
CHICAGO, March 6 (Reuters) - Chicago Board of Trade wheat futures rose sharply on Friday to approach a one-year high, with fears about an escalating Middle East conflict fuelling short-covering ahead of the weekend.
The Middle East conflict has taken attention away from beneficial rain in some U.S. winter wheat belts, which could help bolster already comfortable global supply.
The war has also offset strength in the dollar =USD, which tends to curb Chicago prices as it makes U.S. crops more expensive for export. FRX/
Ratings of French soft wheat crops showed 84% were in good or excellent condition by March 2, stable from a week earlier and up from 74% a year ago, farm office FranceAgriMer said on Friday.
CBOT May soft red winter wheat WK26 settled 33 cents higher to $6.16-3/4 per bushel.
K.C. May hard red winter wheat KWK26 settled 31 cents higher to $6.23-1/2 per bushel, and Minneapolis May spring wheat MWEK26 settled 23-1/2 cents higher to $6.43 per bushel.
