Wheat Futs Surge To Three-Year High As JPMorgan, HSBC Warn Global Food Shock Is Brewing
Wheat futures surged to a three-year high on Wednesday morning as traders repriced a nasty convergence of supply risks across the global agricultural supply chain. Ongoing drone and missile attacks on critical Black Sea shipping and port infrastructure are constraining Russian and Ukrainian exports, while severe Northern Hemisphere heat waves and disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz are amplifying concerns that another food-inflation cycle could rear its ugly head next year. Bloomberg reported that the most-active Chicago wheat contract jumped as much as 2.4% to $7.2025 a bushel, its highest level since July 2023. Futures have gained about 12% so far this month. Russia and Ukraine, two of the world’s most important breadbaskets, account for more than a quarter of global wheat exports and are also major suppliers of corn, barley, and sunflower oil. The Black Sea conflict has escalated since early July, with both sides targeting bulk carriers, ports, and other infrastructure critical to transporting grain and other agricultural products to the rest of the world. Earlier, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Moscow rejected …






