02/23/06 Wheat falls on fund selling

Marketline February 23, 2006 Wheat futures closed lower Wednesday. Profit taking was cited as a factor and there is still uncertainty about just how much U.S. wheat Iraq has purchased. Tom Scheff at the Chicago Board of Trade points to fund liquidation and says bird flu is again a focus of the feed complex. Scheff: "I think that the talk of North African nations canceling U.S. grain purchases because flock numbers are down, consumption numbers are down. I think this has the market quite nervous. By and large it was a high volume, fund selling day. As I mentioned liquidation in wheat and in corn." On Wednesday March Chicago wheat was down seven cents at 3-65 ½. March corn down 4 ½ at 2-21 ½. Portland cash white wheat steady to weak at mostly 3-61. August new crop lower at 3-71 to 3-77. Club wheat 4-02. The only hard red winter wheat bid at Portland is for new crop 11.5 percent protein at 4-92. Spot Dark northern spring 14% protein was mixed at 5-35. No barley bids. Cattle futures were mixed Wednesday. Hedge selling in anticipation of a bearish Cattle on Feed Report this Friday was cited as a factor. Strengthening wholesale beef prices provided some support. April live cattle down 27 cents at 88-20. March feeders up 28 at 107-90. March Class III milk up 18 cents at 11-10. I'm Bob Hoff and that's Marketline on the Northwest Ag Information Network. Now this.