US corn futures plunged to a seven-year low on Friday and hit contract lows in all months after a the government forecast a larger-than-expected harvest, but the market ultimately closed firm as the low prices prompted bargain buying.
Soyabeans eased as the US Department of Agriculture projected the US crop would be the largest ever harvested. Strong demand, particularly from importers in China, offset much of the pressure.
Wheat recovered from early lows and closed slightly higher on short covering.
Chicago Board of Trade September corn futures closed 1-1/4 cents higher at $3.22-1/4 a bushel after sinking as low as $3.12, the lowest point for a spot contract since September 2009. Actively traded December corn gained 1-1/4 cents to $3.33, ending the week down 0.4 percent, the contract's seventh weekly decline in eight weeks.
CBOT September wheat closed up 6-1/4 cents, or 1.5 percent, at $4.22-1/2 a bushel. It was up 1.6 percent for the week, its second straight weekly gain. December through September 2017 futures all hit contract lows.
November soyabeans were 2-1/4 cents lower at $9.81-3/4 a bushel, ending 0.7 percent higher than a week ago.
Futures prices slid after the USDA projected record large corn and soyabean harvests in a monthly report on Friday, with forecasts for both commodities above even the highest analyst estimates.
But the agency also raised its demand outlook, including for exports, which for soyabeans have been stellar of late.
On Friday morning, the USDA confirmed private sales of 258,000 tonnes of new-crop US soyabeans to China, the twelfth large soyabean sale confirmed by the agency in 13 business days.
For wheat, the USDA slashed its outlook for the EU wheat crop following poor summer weather in key production areas of the bloc. But that was offset by bumper wheat crops in the United States and the Black Sea region.
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