Wheat prices settle higher as the week wraps up

Wheat futures tilted higher as the dollar index edged down according to their inverse relation, which follows a spate of data from the U.S., the world's second largest wheat exporter, showing a sharp slowdown in GDP growth in the first quarter. 

As of 08:55 GMT, wheat futures due on July 15 rose 0.23% to $432.25 a bushel from the opening of $431.25, with an intraday high at $434.50, and a low at $429.50, while the dollar index shed 0.06% to 99.02 from the opening of 99.08. 

The winter wheat crops are still threatened by freezing temperature across America's hills, which makes agriculture activities dormant there, as the wetter than usual weather makes the fields very muddy and hinders farmers amid heavy rains and snowing, which threatens the crops that are supposed to be harvested later this month, in turn buoying wheat prices to a two-week high today. 

On the same note, earlier data from the world's largest economy showed the advance GDP reading up 0.7% in the first quarter, down from 2.1% in the fourth quarter of 2016, and missing expectations of 1.3%, while the advance GDP price index rose 2.3%, up from 2.1%, and besting expectations of 2.0%. 

Employment Cost Index accelerated to 0.8% in the first quarter, up from 0.5%, and above forecasts of 0.6%. 

Chicago PMI rose to 58.3 in April from 57.7 in March, beating expectations of 56.9, while the final reading of the University of Michigan consumer confidence survey fell to 97.0 in April from 98.0, missing expectations of 98.1.