Wheat prices at records in US, France, South Africa

Wheat prices hit another record high Thursday on the Chicago Board of Trade when December wheat was briefly up to the 30 cent daily limit to $7.885 per bushel before falling back slightly to close at a 26 cent gain to $7.845 per bushel.

Demand drove prices higher as US exporters sold 17 percent more wheat last week than they had the previous week.

The price of wheat hit new record highs in Paris and Johannesburg as well.

Eurofirst.Liffe wheat rose to €256.75 per tonne, or $9.53 per bushel, while wheat on the South African Futures Exchange were up to R2,872 per tonne, equivalent to $10.92 per bushel.

November soybeans were also higher, adding 10.75 cents to $8.85 per bushel, while December corn fell 0.5 cent to $3.3975 per bushel.

Precious metals prices were lower in New York on Thursday as the US dollar saw advances on the session.

December gold was $1.50 lower to $673.90 per troy ounce, while Silver was down 5 cents to $11.96 per troy ounce and October platinum dropped $6.70 to trade at $1,260 per troy ounce.

Base metals prices were mixed on the session.

Copper traded even at $3.35 per pound in New York, while London Metal Exchange copper was 0.6 percent higher to $7,405 per tonne despite another increase in LME stockpiles.

Tin, meanwhile, added 3 percent on the LME to trade at $15,300 per tonne on tight supplies in Indonesia, after a producer there said that output in the second half will be 40 percent below first half output, and on word that producers are contemplating the institution of voluntary export limits to keep prices up.

Other gainers included lead and nickel, which gained 1.3 percent to $3,180 per tonne and 2 percent to $28,400 per tonne respectively, while aluminium dropped 0.1 percent to $2,528 per tonne and zinc fell 1 percent to $3,020 per tonne.

Natural gas inventories were up last week, adding 42 billion cubic feet to a total of 2.97 trillon cubic feet to sit at 12 percent above the 5-year average for this time of year, but natural gas prices were still up 5 cents to $5.64 per million British thermal units in New York.

Crude oil prices dropped on the session, with West Texas Intermediate crude for October delivery 15 cents lower to $73.36 per barrel on Nymex and Brent crude October contracts down 24 cents to $71.89 per barrel.

Nymex December gasoline traded even at $1.91 per gallon, although at-the-pump prices rose ahead of the holiday weekend in the US, and October heating oil dropped 1 cent to $2.05 per gallon.

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