Chicago Board of Trade corn futures, which rallied last week as rain hampered planting in the US Midwest, fell sharply on Monday, as renewed trade tensions between Washington and Beijing cooled hopes of a deal that would boost US grain exports to China. US President Donald Trump wrote on Twitter on Sunday that he would raise tariffs on Chinese goods this week, clouding prospects for a trade settlement between the world's two largest economies.
The impact of Trump's tweet was felt before the US market opened on Monday morning: CBOT July corn futures fell below the 10- , 20- and 30-day moving averages overnight. Support noted at the low end of the 20-day Bollinger range. Most actively traded CBOT July corn futures ended the day down 6-1/2 cents on Monday, closing at $3.64-1/2 per bushel.
The trade worries broke corn's eight-session rally on Monday, which had been fuelled by concerns over lost plantings and reduced yield potential due to excess moisture this spring. Those weather worries did give corn a tiny boost in the markets on Monday, traders said. More rain is expected around the US Midwest this week, which could further hamper corn planting and raise the chances of some land being switched to later-planted soybeans.
Still, ongoing concerns around export competition continued to drag on prices on Monday, traders said. China said on Monday that a delegation was still preparing to go to the United States for trade talks, even as Trump dramatically increased pressure on Beijing to reach a deal, saying he would hike tariffs on Chinese goods this week. The US Agriculture Department on Monday said weekly export inspections of corn totalled 976,842 tonnes, down from 1,366,477 tonnes a week earlier.
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