Australian Wheat Closes Below A$300

Australian ASX January wheat futures closed below A$300/tonne for the first time since November 2007 Tuesday.

Following a sharply weaker CBOT market and the rejection of the US rescue package for the financial markets wheat has simply got caught up in a broad-based commodity meltdown.

As credit lines continue to tighten, speculative investors continued to exit positions in grain futures, an analyst said.

A Queensland farmers group said Tuesday that the state expects its biggest wheat crop in a decade.

ASX Jan hit $290/tonne before settling A$6 lower at A$294/tonne Tuesday.