Wheat, corn and soybean prices fell on the Chicago exchange on Friday amid technical selling

Wheat, corn and soybean futures ended lower on the Chicago Board of Trade on Friday, July 31. The decline was mainly driven by month-end position closing and profit-taking, although fundamental support factors, including geopolitical risks in the Black Sea region, remained in place.

September soft red winter wheat futures on CBOT fell by 3.65% to $234.88 per ton. Hard red winter wheat contracts in Kansas City declined to $259.96 per ton, while spring wheat futures in Minneapolis dropped to $253.44 per ton. Additional pressure came from the slower pace of US wheat exports, with new-crop sales reaching 33% of the USDA forecast compared with the average pace of 39%.

At the same time, the global wheat supply outlook remains relatively tight. The European Commission lowered its forecast for the EU soft wheat crop in 2026/27 to 124.4 mln tons and reduced its export estimate to 29 mln tons. In France, harvesting has been completed, while 65% of the soft wheat crop was rated in good or excellent condition. Russia will also reintroduce a wheat export duty of 5.7 rubles per ton from August 5 after three weeks at a zero rate.

Corn futures also closed lower. The September CBOT contract fell by 1.84% to $173.52 per ton. Meanwhile, the European Commission sharply cut its forecast for the EU corn crop by 8 mln tons to 51.9 mln tons and raised its import forecast to 24 mln tons due to the expected decline in domestic production.

The decline in soybean futures was more moderate. November soybean contracts lost 0.33% and settled at $436.32 per ton. At the same time, the USDA reported a private sale of 252 thsd tons of new-crop soybeans to undisclosed destinations. New-crop soybean sales have already reached 7.47 mln tons, the highest level in four years and 146% above the same period last year.

European grain futures also moved lower. September milling wheat on Euronext fell to €222.75 per ton, while August corn declined to €243.50 per ton. EU grain exports in the first four weeks of the 2026/27 season fell by 67% year on year to 1.1 mln tons, while imports rose by 22%.

Despite Friday’s technical decline, the market remains exposed to factors that could quickly reverse the price trend. These include growing risks to Black Sea grain exports, further cuts to European crop forecasts and strong demand for US new-crop soybeans.

Tags: corn, prices, soybean, wheat