Wheat prices surged again into record territory Thursday as dry weather menaced crops in the Southern Hemisphere, exacerbating the concerns of a world market bound by extremely tight supply and unrelenting demand, reported The Associated Press. Other commodities finished mixed, with energy prices retreating slightly from sharp gains a day earlier and metals ending in a mixed range. Gold slipped at the market close, while industrial metals including copper and nickel rose modestly. The price of wheat has had a spectacular run higher since mid-May, as one wheat crop after another around the world has been damaged by too-hot or too-dry weather. Now the market has its eye on crops in the Southern Hemisphere: Forecasts are calling for dryness in Argentina and Australia, when the winter wheat crop emerging there needs moisture, said Richard Feltes, senior vice president and director of MF Global Research in Chicago. Feltes also points to a «parade of business that is emerging» in the wheat market that has showed «no sign that high prices are rationing demand.» It's particularly notable that buyers are purchasing for quick shipment, for September or October, rather than for later delivery, he said. The Agriculture Department reported Thursday that new wheat export sales for the week ended Aug. 23 swelled 31 percent from the prior week to 1.4 million metric tons.
