Wheat Falls on Signs of Good Crop in Europe

Wheat prices fell Wednesday on signs that the crop being harvested in Europe will be large.

Crude oil and other energy futures also fell. Metals prices were mixed.

Wheat for September delivery fell 7 cents to $6.435 a bushel.

Todd Hultman, grain analyst at DTN, an Omaha, Neb.-based provider of agricultural markets news and information, said early reports from Europe, where the wheat harvest is beginning, suggest that the crop will be good this year.

Other signs of bountiful wheat harvests around the world have been sending wheat prices lower. Wheat is down 17 percent since the beginning of the year.

Corn and soybeans also edged lower. December corn fell a penny to $4.5825 a bushel. November soybeans fell 1.5 cents to $11.6575 a bushel.

In metals trading, gold for December delivery rose $2.80 to $1,285.30 an ounce. September silver lost 1.5 cents to $19.508 per ounce.

September palladium rose 35 cents to $723.15 an ounce. October platinum rose $10.50 to $1,438.30 an ounce. September copper was flat at $3.173 per pound.

Benchmark crude for September delivery dropped 93 cents to $104.37 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Oil prices have dropped 2.4 percent this week.

In other energy trading, heating oil fell 4 cents to $2.96 a gallon, natural gas fell 7 cents to $3.25 per 1,000 cubic feet and wholesale gasoline fell 4 cents to $2.87 a gallon.