Paris wheat ticks down, with Black Sea supplies in focus

PARIS, Jan 6 (Reuters) - Euronext wheat edged lower on Friday, curbed by a jump in the euro and competition from the Black Sea region.

Price movements were limited however as the market awaited the end of a holiday week in Russia to gauge the country's export prospects, as insurance costs for the Black Sea zone rise due to Moscow's ongoing invasion of Ukraine, dealers said.

March wheat BL2H3 on Paris-based Euronext settled down 0.6% at 300.00 euros ($319.05) a tonne, holding above Thursday's two-week low of 296.75 euros.

Chicago wheat Wv1 was little changed as the market weighed lower-than-expected weekly U.S. exports against a slide in the dollar .DXY following U.S. employment data. GRA/

Trader estimates putting Australia's bumper wheat harvest at 42 million tonnes, well above an official forecast, also helped keep a lid on prices.

"The market is looking for direction," a futures dealer said. "You have Russia and Australia with a huge amount of wheat, but they don't have the capacity to export it all."

Attention was also turning to an import tender announced by Egypt's state buyer GASC, to be held on Tuesday.

“I think this could provide a good clue about whether Russian wheat is still competitive in c&f terms despite the increase in insurance costs,” a German trader said of the Egyptian tender.

In Germany, standard 12% protein wheat for January delivery in Hamburg was offered for sale at a premium of about 14 euros over Euronext March futures, with buyers at around 12 euros over.

“For me, the main theme in the market continues to be the cheap sales offers available from Russia and Ukraine in export markets, which is likely to intensify when more Russian dealers start to return week after the eastern Christmas holiday,” another German trader said.

However, Euronext remained underpinned by a brisk export campaign in France.

Senalia, operator of the country's biggest grain export terminal, saw an 11% year-on-year increase in cereal loadings in July-December, it said on Friday.

($1 = 0.9403 euros)

(Reporting by Gus Trompiz in Paris and Michael Hogan in Hamburg; Editing by Jan Harvey)

((gus.trompiz@thomsonreuters.com; +33 1 49 49 52 18; Reuters Messaging: gus.trompiz.thomsonreuters.com@reuters.))