US corn futures rose 2% on Wednesday as traders unwound bearish bets following the market's decline to its lowest since September 2009 on Tuesday, traders said.
"Corn got down to the lowest prices yesterday we have seen in many years, and we have a short-covering bounce," said Greg Grow, director of agribusiness at Archer Financial Services in Chicago.
Soyabean futures firmed slightly, with the market receiving some support from news of fresh purchases of US soyabeans by China, the top importer of the oilseed.
But wheat fell as traders squared positions after recent strong gains.
At 11:38 a.m. CDT (1635 GMT), Chicago Board of Trade July corn futures were up 6-1/4 cents at $3.23-1/2 a bushel.
Analysts said the move did nothing to change the underlying fundamentals that have cast a bearish tone over corn due to expectations of lower demand for ethanol.
CBOT July soft red winter wheat was down 3 cents at $5.43-1/4 a bushel.
Wheat had rallied more than 2% earlier in the week after the USDA said the condition of the national crop was below market expectations, stoking fears of tight supplies.
Chicago Board of Trade July soyabean futures were 3/4 cent higher at $8.41-1/2 a bushel.
The contract was trading off its highs after hitting technical resistance at it neared its 10-day moving average.
Chinese importers signed deals to buy at least three bulk shipments of US soyabeans this week after prices sank to an 11-month low on Tuesday as part of a broad-based commodities sell-off due to the coronavirus outbreak, according to government and private sources.
The US Department of Agriculture said on Wednesday morning that private exporters reported the sale of 198,000 tonnes of soyabeans, or about three bulk cargoes, to China in the 2019/20 marketing year.