March 30, 2010

 

CBOT Corn Review on Monday: Up slightly; pre-report short-covering

 

 

Chicago Board of Trade corn ended up slightly amid short-covering, although the market relinquished most of the day's gains late in the session.

 

May corn ended up 3/4 cent, to US$3.57 per bushel, and July corn was up 3/4 cent, to US$3.68 1/4.

 

Traders are awaiting Wednesday's planting intentions and quarterly stocks reports, and with the market considered oversold, short-covering boosted the market for much of the day.

 

A weaker dollar and gains in crude oil of more than US$2 added support to the market, traders said. Also, soy were more than 15 cents higher due, in part, to labor unrest in Argentina, which helped underpin corn.

 

But prices retreated when wheat and soy softened. A floor trader said the short-covering was likely finished.

 

"You can't be bullish going into this report," he said.

 

Analysts are, on average, projecting that acreage will total 88.941 million acres in Wednesday's planting intentions report from the U.S. Department of Agriculture. That would be up from the 2009 total of 86.5 million acres, but down slightly from the government's estimate of 89 million at the annual USDA Ag Outlook Forum on Feb. 19.

 

Near-term weather forecasts are calling for sharply higher temperatures along with breezy conditions, which will help soils dry and are considered bearish. However, longer-range forecasts call for rains that could still stall planting.

 

Analysts add that after getting off to a slow start, farmers in the southern U.S. are making better planting progress.

 

Funds were even on the day. Traders say the market will likely feature more positioning Tuesday, with any sharp moves in prices unlikely.

 

CBOT oats ended flat. May oats closed at US$2.12 per bushel and July oats settled at US$2.21.

 

Ethanol futures were higher. April ethanol settled up US$0.019, to US$1.572 per gallon, and May ethanol closed up US$0.022, to US$1.590.