European wheat futures in Paris climbed on Wednesday as peace talks in Abu Dhabi failed to produce a safe-shipping agreement for Russian and Ukrainian Black Sea exports. The lack of a deal kept export demand focused on the European Union, particularly France. Traders also expressed concerns over intensified Russian and Ukrainian attacks as the talks concluded, with Russia's Baltic grain export port of Ust-Luga being targeted.
December wheat on the Paris-based Euronext exchange rose 1.6% to €234.25 ($261.54) a metric ton by 1552 GMT, rebounding from Friday's four-month low of €218.50. Prices had previously faced downward pressure due to hopes that the Abu Dhabi talks could revive Black Sea shipping. Russian wheat exports are currently running at about half normal volumes after attacks disrupted ship-borne exports in mid-August.
A German trader noted that any new safe-shipping deal could flood world markets with large volumes of Russian and Ukrainian wheat, but the absence of such an agreement means the EU, including France, will need to meet export demand. Meanwhile, a purchase tender from Algeria was expected to be largely sourced from Argentina, where the new harvest is beginning.
The EU's need for corn imports was highlighted by Germany's 2026 corn harvest, which is expected to fall 17.1% year-on-year due to a hot, dry summer that damaged crops.