Chicago wheat surpasses $12 mark
Chicago wheat prices rose the most in more than five years, breaching $12 a bushel for the first time as investors poured money into agricultural commodities on signs that global crop production isn't keeping pace with demand.
Global wheat stockpiles will probably fall to a 30-year low this year, while corn inventories are headed for the lowest since 1984, the US Department of Agriculture said on Feb 8. Almost $1.5 billion flowed into farm commodities in the week to Feb 19, investment bank UBS AG said on Monday.
Wheat, soybeans, corn and palm oil are among commodities that have touched records this month, stoking prices of bread, pasta and noodles worldwide. The gains have driven up costs for food companies from Kellogg Co. to Premier Foods Plc.
"Agricultural commodities such as wheat are the place to be right now," said Eugen Weinberg, a commodities analyst at Commerzbank AG in Frankfurt. "Production may be rising, but not at the pace necessary to keep up with increased demand."
Wheat for May delivery rose by the daily limit of 90 cents, or 8 percent, to $12.145 a bushel in after-hours trading on the Chicago Board of Trade, the biggest one-day percentage gain since October 2002. It was at $11.615 as of 10:20 am in London.
Agencies
(China Daily 02/27/2008 page17)
