Wheat futures are posting modest gains of 2 to 5 cents in early Monday trading, building on last week's strong rally driven by escalating Black Sea conflict that has disrupted exports through strikes on ports and vessels. Chicago SRW contracts closed Friday 4 ¾ to 9 ½ cents higher, with September up 42 ½ cents for the week, while KC HRW futures surged 10 ½ to 15 ¾ cents on the day and September gained 56 cents on the week. MPLS spring wheat rose 6 ½ to 11 ½ cents on Friday, with September rallying 39 ¼ cents. Managed money sharply reduced their net short in CBT wheat futures and options by 25,527 contracts to 36,798 contracts in the week ending July 14, and added 5,730 contracts to their net long in KC wheat, reaching 17,494 contracts. The USDA reported 2026/27 wheat sales at 2.057 million metric tons as of July 9, representing 10% of the export projection and ahead of the five-year average pace of 9%. In France, the AgriMer rated 65% of the wheat crop as good to excellent, with harvest 92% complete, while Argus estimated the French wheat crop at 30.8 million metric tons, a 7.6% decline from last year.