CHICAGO: Chicago Board of Trade corn futures ended lower on Monday as funds scaled back long positions ahead of the US presidential election on Tuesday, and forecasts called for optimal weather in the Midwest, traders said.

CBOT December corn settled down 1 cent at $3.97-1/2 per bushel.

Corn was vulnerable to long liquidation after speculators built up a massive net long position during a recent run-up in prices to a 14-month high, with sentiment buoyed by strong demand for corn from China.

Fresh export demand underpinned the market. The US Department of Agriculture confirmed private sales of 204,000 tonnes of US corn to unknown destinations for delivery in the 2020/21 marketing year that began Sept. 1.

The USDA reported export inspections of US corn in the latest week at 721,623 tonnes, toward the low end of trade expectations for 600,000 to 1.1 million tonnes.

Ahead of the USDA's weekly crop progress report due later on Monday, analysts surveyed by Reuters on average expected the government to report the US corn harvest as 83% complete, up from 72% a week earlier.-Reuters