European market
The new easing of the euro against the dollar, back below 1.1500 at the beginning of the week, brings an element of support to EU commodity prices. This mechanical price adjustment pushes up the prices, both on the physical market and on the Euronext futures market.
Faced with this rebound, European exporters remain vigilant in this second half of the campaign in the context of attractiveness of Black Sea origins at the beginning of spring. The tender launched yesterday by Tunisia, for soft wheat over a loading period between the beginning of May and the first half of June, will be closely followed.
Rapeseed was the most dynamic market yesterday on Euronext. It returned above €500/t on the front contract. The May 2026 contract, which closes in a month, ended the session at € 508/t, returning during the day to trade at €510/t. This resistance zone has been tested many times over the past fortnight. The prices of rapeseed oil mark in parallel a slight increase over the near period.
American market
Faced with a still tense context on the energy market because of the situation in the Middle East, with crude oil prices in New York now above $100/b for WTI, commodity prices in Chicago do not show the same firmness. Grain market operators are, in the short term, more focused on quarterly stock forecasts and especially on estimates of the areas sown in corn and soybeans this season. The USDA will publish its estimates today, knowing that operators have been expecting for several months a decrease in corn areas in favour of soybeans, considered more remunerative for US farmers.
The dry conditions observed in the Wheat Belt area lead to a further deterioration in the ratings of winter wheat crops. The situation is deteriorating in the states of Kansas, Texas and Oklahoma compared to the previous week. This situation provided some support to wheat prices, both for the HRW quality wheat contracts and for the SRW contract in Chicago, which closed higher compared to Friday's session.
On the other hand, corn showed a strong decline, closing the session for the May 2026 contract below $4.56/bu, its lowest level for two weeks. This decrease benefits for some buyers who are repositioning themselves on the US origin. The USDA reported yesterday new exceptional sales, for a volume of 145,000 t of corn to an undisclosed destination.
In soybean, prices did not change much yesterday in Chicago, integrating the progressions of the Brazilian harvest. On the other hand, we will note the firmness of soybean oil prices after the EPA publications last week.
Black Sea market
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