The US Department of Defence has said there was currently no information to suggest that a surface-to-air missile took down the plane presumed to be carrying Wagner chief Yevgeny Prigozhin. There is speculation that an explosion on board the plane caused the crash. President Putin has expressed condolences and praised Mr Prigozhin as a talented businessman but added that he had ““He was a man of complicated fate, and he made serious mistakes in his life, but he achieved the right results” and said that it was necessary to await the outcome of the “official investigation” into the crash.

Hungary wants the EU ban on domestic sales of Ukrainian grain to be extended in the five EU member states bordering Ukraine after the current measure ends on 15 Sept. Prime Minister Viktor Orban’s chief of staff, at a briefing on Thursday, said Hungary was ready to reimpose a national import ban if the EU did not extend the measure. Poland has also said it would not lift the ban even if the EU did not agree on its extension.

Buenos Aires Grain Exchange pegged 2023-24 corn area at 7.3 million hectares, up 3pc year on year in a preseason report, but cautioned that overly dry conditions could delay the start of planting, especially with respect to sowings of early maize as most of the area had little water reserves. El Niño was expected to bring required moisture in time for planting of late varieties. 

FranceAgriMer said initial reports from harvest had 93pc of the 2023-24 wheat crop showing protein content exceeding the milling requirement of 11pc compared to the 5-year average of 87pc. Final quality estimates are expected to be released on 13 September. 

US Pro Farmer crop tour scouts found on Wednesday Illinois soybean pod counts and corn yield prospects were above last year and the 3-year average.  

Thai importers reportedly purchased 60,000t feed wheat, likely to be sourced from Romania, at US$274/t c&f for Nov shipment.

Australia

Local markets were largely unchanged yesterday both nearby and forward months. Trade bid offer spreads remained wide, and grower selling on new crop is the sticking point causing lack of liquidity. New crop canola bids had a little pop from the previous trading day which saw grower bids bounce A$8-12/t.

After another dry week, the northern feed grain market continued to firm. SFW1 delivered Downs was offered at $467-482/t for Jan+ as growers continue to hold off selling until a clearer picture of production emerges. Harvest is expected to commence in mid-September in Qld amid some decent crops. Prices are likely to ease with more grower selling.