Chicago Board of Trade corn futures declined 0.8 percent on Wednesday in technical selling in the wake of a seven-month high notched on Tuesday, traders said. The lack of new bullish information weighed, with increasing export demand for US corn due to drought in No. 3 shipper Argentina already factored into futures.
Most-active CBOT May corn hit downside support near its 10-day moving average, and the contract settled down 3 cents at $3.88-3/4. March corn expired at midday, 2 cents lower at $3.83-1/2. Corn-based ethanol production in the latest week averaged 1.03 million barrels per day, down 32,000 bpd. Ethanol stocks were up 1.14 million barrels to a record-large 24.28 million barrels, according to the US Energy Information Administration.
Advisory service Allendale Inc estimated following a survey of farmers that US corn plantings at 88.514 million acres and soyabean acres at a record 92.104 million acres. The CME Group reported no CBOT March corn deliveries.