Chicago December wheat fell 24½c a bu, the largest loss of the day for wheat on any of the three exchanges, on deliveries of 2,119 contracts on the first notice day for delivery against the December contract. Traders had expected deliveries of only 100 to 200 contracts.
The large deliveries, coupled with lower-than-expected weekly export wheat sales reported by the U.S. Department of Agriculture on Thursday, indicated U.S. wheat supplies may not be as tight as estimated, and may not be drawn down as quickly as expected.
Chicago December wheat closed at $8.44¾ a bu, down 3c for the week, Kansas City December at 8.97½ a bu, up 19¼c for the week, and Minneapolis at $9.18½ a bu, up 4¾c for the week.
Kansas City hard red winter wheat futures were supported mainly by concerns about drought and low crop condition ratings before the crop goes into dormancy.
