Chicago Board of Trade corn futures gained slightly on Wednesday as reports of a decline in weekly US ethanol stocks countered pressure from a strong planting pace in the Midwest.

CBOT most-active July corn settled up 2-1/2 cents at $3.14-1/2 per bushel.

Front-month May corn set a contract low at $3.00-1/4, just above psychological support at the $3 mark, before turning higher.

US stocks of corn-based ethanol declined for the first time in five weeks, while weekly production continued to decline, according to the US Energy Information Administration.