CBOT corn futures may rise on speculation China will boost imports

Corn futures may advance in Chicago on speculation that China will boost imports, helping drain excess supply in the global market.

The Asian nation, the world's second-largest corn consumer, has issued 2.8 million tonnes of corn import quotas this year to the private sector, Zeng Liying, deputy director of the State Administration of Grain, said at a conference in Beijing.

China's corn buying "has the ability to provide excellent support to prices despite the fact there is expected to be significantly larger world supplies in 2010-2011," Commonwealth Bank of Australia said in a report.

Corn for July delivery climbed as much as 0.5% to US$3.71 a bushel on the Chicago Board of Trade on May 24 and was at US$3.69 a bushel at 12:38 p.m. London time.

Twenty-five of 35 traders and analysts surveyed from Chicago to Tokyo on May 21 said corn will gain because of rising purchases by China.

World corn production is forecast by the International Grains Council to rise 1.9% from a year earlier to a record 822 million tonnes in the year through June 2011. The council also raised its forecast for the global wheat harvest to 660 million tonnes.

Wheat for July delivery dropped 0.4% to US$4.70 a bushel in Chicago and soy climbed 0.6% to US$9.4625 a bushel.