China cuts minimum wheat purchase price by 2.5%: NDRC

China has cut its minimum purchase price for wheat by 2.5% to 2,300 yuan per tonne, the National Development and Reform Commission said on its website on Friday.

In a statement the commission said it had considered the grain production costs, market supply and demand, domestic and foreign market prices and industrial development along with other factors for the 2018 production of wheat before establishing a minimum purchase price of 115 yuan per 50 kilograms.

The new purchase price equates to $346/mt, more than $100/mt over current cash prices in Australia on an FOB basis.

The announcement comes as global carryover wheat stocks are estimated to hit a record high at the end of the year of almost 250 million mt, according to the International Grains Council.