US MIDDAY: corn futures firmer

Corn futures at the Chicago Board of Trade were firmer on Thursday on a mild recovery from Wednesday's sell-off, traders said.
The rally in CBOT soybean futures was also supportive along with a sharp rise in nearby CIF corn bids at the US Gulf by Thursday's mid-session.
The CBOT corn market was mostly higher, up 3/4 cent to down 1/2 cent. March corn was up 1/2 at $2.71-1/4 a bushel.
Commodity funds were on both sides of the market. Refco Inc. bought 1,000 March and Cargill Investor Services sold 1,000 March by the midsession.
But commercials were featured players in the options pit, floor traders said. Term Commodities bought 1,000 March $2.90 calls and 400 March $2.80 calls, which helped lift futures prices.
US corn prices have been supported recently by worries about declining 2003/04 world corn stocks, estimated by USDA in January at a 25-year low. Continued dryness in Argentina was also raising concerns about further cuts in world stocks.
CBOT oat futures were down 1-1/2 cents to up 1/2 cent, keeping within its recent trade range. March oats were down 1/4 at $1.53 a bushel.