Chicago Board of Trade corn futures fell for a third straight session on Tuesday after the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) projected a larger-than-expected increase in US plantings this spring, traders said.
The government's large projected increase in corn production comes amid concerns about demand from the ethanol sector, which consumes more than a third of the crop. Numerous ethanol plants have slowed or idled production amid plunging energy prices due to the coronavirus pandemic.
CBOT May corn settled down 1/2 cent at $3.40-3/4 per bushel, while new-crop December fell 2-1/4 cents to $3.57-1/2 after earlier hitting a contract low of $3.53-1/4.
All contracts from September 2020 and beyond posted contract lows during the session. The USDA forecast corn plantings of 96.990 million acres, above the average analyst forecast for 94.328 million acres.