Chicago Board of Trade corn futures higher on Tuesday on technical buying and following a reduction late on Monday in condition ratings for the US crop, traders said. Investors also were buying corn and selling both soybeans and wheat futures, with rainfall in the Midwestern crop belt seen benefiting soybeans more than corn while plentiful global wheat supplies limited export demand.
Corn futures climbed to their highest in nearly a week but still remained in the wide price range established on Wednesday, when the US Department of Agriculture in a monthly report shocked the market by boosting its US corn and soybean production forecast. Most-active December corn futures, which reflect the autumn harvest, traded 5 percent above their contract low from Wednesday of $3.57-1/2 per bushel. USDA in a weekly report after the close of trading on Monday cut good-to-excellent condition ratings for the US corn crop by 1 percentage point, matching analyst expectations.