December 8, 2005

 

CBOT Corn Outlook on Thursday: 1 cent higher on e-CBOT, exports, soy

  

 

Corn futures at the Chicago Board of Trade are expected to open 1 cent higher on Thursday, following the tone set in overnight activity and firm export sales, sources said.

 

In overnight e-CBOT trading, December corn gained 1 cent to US$1.88 per bushel, March rose 3/4 cent to US$2.01 3/4, and May added on 1 1/2 cents at US$2.11 per bushel.

 

The market should start off a little better, a floor trader said. Export sales were at the high end of expectations, there should be some position squaring ahead of Friday's report and corn should see some spillover strength from soybeans, he added.
 

Weekly corn exports were 694,300 metric tonnes, near the high end of analyst's expectations, with Japan the largest buyer.

 

Soybean futures are called to open 2-4 cents higher as better than expected export sales were deemed supportive. China was noted as a large buyer in the weekly report.

 

Position squaring ahead of Friday's U.S. Department of Agriculture supply/demand report might also add to the steady tone, sources said.

 

The CBOT reported 1,115 deliveries against the December corn contract Thursday morning. Large issuers included the customer account of the Century Group Division of Man Financial, which issued 215 contracts, and the customer account of Man Financial, which issued 200 contracts. Large stoppers included the customer account of R.J. O'Brien, which stopped 245 contracts, the Century Group Division of Man Financial, which stopped 173 contracts, and the customer account of Cunningham Commodities, which stopped 124 contracts.

 

On technical charts, market technicians peg first resistance for March corn at US$2.03 3/4, Wednesday's high and then at US$2.05. First support is pegged at US$2.00 1/4, Wednesday's low and then at US$2.00, the contract low.

 

In other corn news, China reported the fifth human case of bird flu in the country. A poultry worker from northeast China caught the disease in late Oct. and was released from the hospital late last month, the official Xinhua News Agency said,

 

Taiwan's Member Feed Industry Group bought 58,000 metric tonnes of U.S.-origin corn from trading firm Marubeni in a tender concluded Thursday, a Taiwan based trader said.

 

The Korea Corn Processing Industry Association bought up to 110,000 metric tonnes of optional origin corn from Cargill in a tender concluded Wednesday, a Seoul-based trader said Thursday.

 

Cash corn prices were higher in the week ended Wednesday as higher prices at the CBOT in recent days helped support prices, local traders said. Producers had sown 82% of the 2005-06 crop by Saturday, according to the Buenos Aires Exchange. The exchange sees planted area down to 2.23 million hectares, down 15% from the 2.62 million planted last year.

 

Through Dec. 2, Argentina had sold 12.495 million tonnes of 2004-05 corn for export, up from 9.545 million sold last year, the Agriculture Secretariat said.

 

Corn futures on China's Dalian Commodity Exchange settled slightly lower on profit-taking, sources said, with the most active September contract down RMB4/tonne to RMB1,308/tonne.