Corn futures at the Chicago Board of Trade dropped 2 percent early on Thursday on outlooks for improved corn seeding weather in the US Midwest, traders said. At 10:03 am CDT (1503 GMT), CBOT corn was down 3 to 7-1/2 cents per bushel, with May down 7 at $3.53-3/4 per bushel. New-crop December was down 5-1/2 at $3.82-1/4 per bushel.
Goldenberg Hehmeyer sold 500 May and Rand Financial sold 200 May. The weather factor was overriding bullish perceptions from a big number for corn in USDA's export sales report, they said.
DTN Meteorlogix weather on Thursday said cold and rain through early next week would slow spring fieldwork in the Midwest. However, drier weather is expected later next week which will give farmers a chance to begin planting their corn crop. US farmers are expected to plant nearly 90.5 million acres of corn this year, the largest acreage since 1944, according to the US Department of Agriculture.
A flurry of export business failed to generate any bullish momentum in the corn futures market. The USDA early Thursday said 1,507,000 tonnes of corn were sold for export last week, above estimates for 600,000 to 800,000 tonnes. Oat futures were unchanged to 4-3/4 cents per bushel lower, with May down 5 at $2.72-1/2 per bushel.