Wheat Poised for Longest Rally in 14 Months

Image via WikipediaWheat rose in Chicago, set for the longest winning streak since November 2009, as North African importers boost purchases to curb food inflation amid riots over high prices.

Egypt purchased 659,800 metric tons of U.S. wheat from the start of the marketing year on June 1 through Jan. 6, U.S. Department of Agriculture data show. That’s up from 366,000 tons last year, according to the USDA. Tunisia bought 100,000 tons of wheat on Jan. 24, Reuters reported. Elevated food prices contributed to outbreaks of rioting in both countries.

“In the case of wheat, prices are reflecting food-security issues we’ve seen recently,” said Erin FitzPatrick, an analyst at Rabobank in London. “There’s certainly some correlation with a lot of those countries coming into the market and saying they want to increase their stock levels.” Read more...