After closing below US$4/bu on Friday, corn futures managed to rebound to begin the new week. Wheat was also higher, while soybeans ended mixed.
Reports attributed the strength in corn today to ideas that managed money funds had finally hit their limit in adding short positions. The nearby March corn contract fell to more than three-year lows earlier in the day before ending in the black. March corn gained 7 ¼ cents to $4.07 and December was up 7 ½ cents at $4.57.
Soybeans were also lower earlier in the day, also dropping to more than three-year lows, before short covering emerged to take the nearby future higher into the close. In other news, consultancy AgRural lowered its estimate for Brazil's 2023-24 soybean crop to 147.7 tonnes from its January forecast of 150.1 million. March added 3 cents to $11.36 but new-crop November ended with a ½-cent loss to $11.29.
The gains in corn helped to buoy wheat, with traders awaiting updated US winter wheat crop condition ratings from the USDA tomorrow. March Chicago wheat was up 3 ¾ cents to $5.77 ¼, March Kansas City jumped 15 cents to $5.83 ¾, and March Minneapolis added 6 ¾ cents to $6.48 ¼.
