April 29, 2006

 

CBOT Corn Review on Friday: Higher on funds, weather, soybeans

 

 

Corn futures finished moderately higher Friday, boosted by fund buying and spillover from sharply higher soybeans, sources said.

 

In addition, trechnical buying and wet weather forecasts added support, they added.

 

May corn rose 7 cents to US$2.38 1/4 per bushel, July gained 6 1/4 cents to US$2.49, and December settled 5 3/4 cents higher to US$2.71 3/4.

 

Fund buying and sharply higher soybean futures set the higher tonnee from the opening bell, floor sources said.

 

July soybeans settled 10 1/2 cents higher at US$6.01.

 

Commodity fund buying was estimated at 6,000 contracts.

 

The funds liquidated some of their short soybean positions and added to their long soy oil and corn positions, said Joe Bedore, a floor manager at FC Stonnee. The funds are long corn and soy oil as part of a biodiesel and ethanol play, he added.

 

Technical buying and forecasts for wet weather in much of the western corn belt delaying corn planting added another layer of support, a floor trader said.

 

On technical charts, July futures gapped open higher and finished above most major moving averages after starting the session below most of them, a commission house analyst said.

 

Wet weather forecast for much of the western U.S. Midwest this weekend also provided support, the commission house analyst said.

 

Rainfall of up to 2 inches, with locally heavier amounts, is forecast for the western U.S. Midwest this weekend, ncluding all of Iowa, northern and eastern Missouri, eastern Nebraska and parts of eastern South Dakota and southern Minnesota, DTN Meteorlogix Weather said.

 

Buyers on Friday included Goldenberg-Hehmeyer, which bought 2,000 December. JP Morgan bought 2,000 July, Fimat bought 1,000 July and 600 December, Man Financial bought 1,200 July, ABN Amro bought 1,800 July and Tenco purchased 300 July.

 

Sellers on Friday included Man Financial, which sold 1,400 July. O'Connor sold 1,000 July, JP Morgan sold 400 May, Fimat sold 400 July, and Rosenthal sold 300 July.

 

In spread trading, Fimat bought 2,500 September-July and Tenco bought 2,000 July-September.

 

In option trades, the Refco division of Man Financial bought 1,000 December US$3.00 calls.

 

Oat futures settled sharply higher as fund buying pushed prices higher, sources said. The absence of deliveries against the spot month May also provided some support, a floor trader said. The July contract rose 5 3/4 cents to US$1.90 1/2 per bushel.

 

Ethanol futures ended mostly higher in light trade. The spot-month May contract jumped 10 1/2 cents to US$2.72 1/2 per gallon and the June contract rose 1 cent to US$2.61.

 

Friday afternoon the Commodity Futures Trading Commission is scheduled to release the commitment of traders report as of April 25.

 

On Monday the U.S. Department of Agriculture is scheduled to release the weekly export inspections at 10 a.m. CDT and the weekly crop progress at 3 p.m. CDT.