Chicago Board of Trade corn futures settled up slightly after chopping back and forth on Thursday as U.S. Midwest weather looked favorable next week and traders adjusted positions ahead of the U.S. Independence Day holiday weekend. But they were still underpinned by U.S. Department of Agriculture data released on Tuesday.
U.S. markets will be closed on Friday in observance of the Independence Day holiday.
CBOT September corn (CU26) settled up 1/4 cent at $4.23 per bushel, and new-crop December corn (CZ26) ended down 3/4 cent at $4.41-1/2 a bushel.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture's quarterly stocks report on Tuesday pegged U.S. June 1 corn stocks at 5.295 billion bushels, up from a year earlier but below the range of analyst estimates.
After a hot spell in the U.S. Midwest this week, cooler temperatures and showers are expected to limit crop stress, according to forecaster Commodity Weather Group.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture reported total net weekly export sales of corn for the week ended June 25 at 1,499,800 metric tons.