A large cargo of Romanian wheat has set sail for France, marking an unusually big import of the grain by the European Union's biggest wheat exporter, traders said on Monday. The Star Harmony bulk carrier was thought to be carrying around 45,000 tonnes of wheat from the Romanian Black Sea port of Constanta to the northern French port of Dunkirk, traders said. Shipping data showed the vessel had left Constanta on Sunday and traders said it was expected in Dunkirk around the end of the month. France typically imports small volumes of wheat, including from other EU countries, but large shipments are rare.
The country had brought in about 10,000 tonnes of Romanian wheat between July and February in the current 2020/21 season, according to latest French customs data. FRIMPORT/WHEAT The sizeable shipment en route may reflect an end-of-season trading opportunity given relatively high prices and low availability in France, traders said. GRA/EU The Romanian wheat could potentially be used to make a physical delivery against Euronext's May wheat futures BL2K1, which expire on May 10, given that Dunkirk hosts a Euronext-registered silo and the exchange accepts all EU origins that meet its wheat specifications, the traders added.