HAMBURG: South Korea's largest animal feed maker Nonghyup Feed Inc. (NOFI) purchased about 69,000 tonnes of corn expected to be sourced either from South America or South Africa in an international tender which closed on Wednesday, European traders said.

The tender had sought up to 276,000 tonnes for arrival in South Korea in December 2020 and January 2021, but only one of four consignments in the tender was purchased.

The corn was bought at an estimated $197.80 a tonne c&f plus a $1.25 a tonne surcharge for additional port unloading.

The seller was believed to be trading house Cargill.

The consignment bought was for arrival around Dec. 5.

If sourced from South America, shipment is between Oct. 8 and Oct. 27 or from South Africa between Oct. 18 and Nov. 6.

The seller has the option to supply 69,000 tonnes from South America or 50,000 tonnes from South Africa, they said.

Traders said Asian import demand was sparked after Chicago corn futures plunged 2.5pc and hit new contract lows across the board on Tuesday on expectations of a massive US crop.