Refer to Table $26\mathrm{.}2$ in the text to answer this question. Suppose today is March $28,2018,$ and your firm produces breakfast cereal and needs $175,000$ bushels of wheat in July $2018$ for an upcoming promotion. You would like to lock in your costs today because you are concerned that wheat prices might go up between now and July. You are looking at wheat futures contracts traded on the MPLS$.$

a$-1.$ How many wheat futures contracts would you purchase or sell to hedge your risk exposure? $($Do not round intermediate calculations.$)$

Number of contracts to

a$-2.$ What total price would you effectively be locking in based on the closing price of the day? $($Do not round intermediate calculations. Round your final answers to one decimal place. Omit $ sign in your response.$)$

Total price $

b$-1.$ Suppose wheat prices are $$6\mathrm{.}27$ per bushel in July $2018.$ What is the profit or loss on your futures position? $($Do not round intermediate calculations. Omit $ sign in your response. Round your final answers to one decimal place.$)$

$

b$-2.$ This part of the question is not part of your Connect assignment.