Saturday, 28 March 2015 01:13
CHICAGO: Chicago Board of Trade corn futures finished mostly lower in a two-sided session on Friday as investors evened positions before the US Department of Agriculture releases data next week, traders said.
Most-active May corn futures reversed from narrow gains and settled lower, still gaining about 1.7 percent for the week. Prices reached roughly a five-week peak on Thursday before turning lower in a bearish “outside day” on the charts. Friday’s session low of $ 3.89-1/4 per bushel equaled Thursday’s low, providing a support level in an area where several major moving averages were converging.
Estimated volume on Friday was about 224,000 contracts, which would be the lightest since March 9, Reuters data showed. Open interest declined during this week’s rally, suggesting investors were exiting short positions.
USDA next week is likely to show reduced corn acres and increased sowings of soybeans and sorghum.
Brazil will likely produce 75.9 million tonnes of corn in 2014/15, local analyst Safras & Mercado said, up from 74.7 million tonnes expected previously. Of that, 45.5 million tonnes would come from the second annual harvest now being planted, Safras said in a report.
Copyright Reuters, 2015
