October 28, 2001	Sunday	Shaba'an 10, 1422

KANSAS CITY, Oct 27: Kansas City Board of Trade hard red winter wheat futures closed higher on Friday on technical follow-through from Thursday’s strong close.

KCBT wheat closed 3 to 5-1/4 cents per bushel higher, with December up 5-1/4 at $3.01-1/2 per bushel.

The session high for the December was $3.02 per bushel and KCBT traders said resistance in the December contract Friday was in the $3.01 to $3.02 per bushel area.

The fund-related technical strength was complemented by evidence of bullish fundamental plays in the wheat market late this week.

Key commercial Cargill Inc. was central to the gains Thursday in the Chicago and Kansas City wheat markets and was also said to be a good buyer in the cash markets.

The commercial activity led to talk of export business, and there was some speculation that a tender by Morocco for 100,000 tonnes of wheat may come from the United States.

But traders in Paris early Friday said Morocco bought only 60,000 tons of high-quality milling wheat and they said the supply was not likely to come from the United States.

There were no signs overnight or early Friday of significant wheat demand from China. Thursday’s gains had led to speculation of possible sales of US wheat to that country.

China is unlikely to buy significant amounts of US wheat since China’s wheat-growing regions are expecting to receive enough rain to boost crop prospects, traders in Beijing said.

Also, China is conducting tenders to sell more than 2.5 million tons of grains this month and in November, they said.

Crop weather in the key US Great Plains hard red winter wheat-growing region remained overall favorable, but dry weather in western Kansas and in western Oklahoma was causing some moisture stress.

Excessive wet weather in the US Midwest was slowing seedings of the soft red winter wheat crop and recent rainfall in China’s wheat region helped buoy crop prospects there, plus there was word early Friday that Australia’s wheat harvest is proceeding at a rapid clip.

Concerns remained about the fate of Argentina’s crop due to excessive rainfall and flooding in portions of Argentina’s wheat-growing region.—Reuters