December 15, 2010

Demand falls at China's corn auction

China's government sold 120,600 tonnes of corn, or just 7.9% of the volume it offered, at an auction of grain from state reserves Tuesday (Dec 14), the state-backed China National Grain and Oil Information Centre said.

The sales volume was slightly lower than at the previous week's auction, when the government sold 12% of a similar volume of corn.

The average price at Tuesday's auction was RMB1,861 (US$279)/tonne, down from RMB1,870 (US$281)/tonne last week.

Corn prices in China's Henan province, a major producing area, are around RMB1,880 (US$282)/tonne Tuesday, while in Sichuan, a major consumption area, they are around RMB2,290 (US$449)/tonne, according to sources.