CANBERRA, Sept 15 (Reuters) - Chicago wheat futures slipped back towards 33-month lows on Friday as traders assessed plentiful supply from Russia and a slight increase in projected production in Canada.
Corn and soybean futures edged higher.
FUNDAMENTALS
* The most-active wheat contract on the Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT) was down 0.1% at $5.93-1/4 a bushel at 0058 GMT. It was barely changed over the week after falling to $5.70 a bushel on Tuesday, the lowest since December 2020.
* CBOT soybeans were up 0.1% at $13.62-1/4 a bushel and barely changed this week. Corn was 0.1% higher at $4.80-3/4 a bushel, but down 0.6% so far this week.
* A Canadian government report showed on Thursday that Canadian farmers will harvest 29.8 million metric tons of wheat, slightly more than previously expected but 13% less than last year due to dry conditions.
* The new wheat estimate fell short of the average industry expectation of 30.4 million tons.
* Argentina's 2023/24 wheat crop, meanwhile, has been helped by recent rains in key agricultural areas, the Buenos Aires grains exchange said.
* The exchange said around 24% of planted wheat was in "good or excellent" condition, up 5.7% from a week earlier, predicting a harvest of 16.5 million metric tons.
* Argentina and Canada are major global wheat exporters.
* In Europe, Consultancy Strategie Grains cut its forecast for European Union soft wheat exports by 700,000 tons to 30.1 million metric tons this season, saying EU wheat was proving uncompetitive against Russian wheat.
* The market is awash with cheap wheat from Russia, with consultancy Sovecon this month saying the country would export 48.6 million metric tons in the 2023/24 season.
* Chicago prices have fallen despite expectations that global exportable wheat stocks will approach historic lows by mid-2024.
* Looking at weather conditions, a U.S. government forecaster said there was a more than 95% chance that the El Nino weather pattern would continue through the Northern Hemisphere winter from January to March 2024, bringing more extreme conditions.
* Dry weather brought by El Nino has lowered projected harvests in Southern Hemisphere exporters such as Australia, raising the prospect of a tighter wheat market and higher prices once Northern Hemisphere harvests end.
* In soybeans, traders await an August crush report on Friday from the National Oilseed Processors Association (NOPA) for signs that higher processing could cut into stockpiles.
* Commodity funds were net buyers of Chicago soybeans, soymeal and soyoil futures on Thursday and net sellers of wheat and corn, traders said.
MARKETS NEWS
U.S. stocks ended sharply higher and the U.S. dollar jumped on Thursday as robust economic data cemented expectations that the Federal Reserve will leave its key interest rate unchanged next week.
(Reporting by Peter Hobson; Editing by Sherry Jacob-Phillips)
