Chicago Board of Trade corn futures fell on Friday, following declines in soyabeans as Brazil's currency softened, making grains and soya from the South American country more competitive on the world market, traders said. CBOT December corn settled down 2-1/4 cents at $3.48-1/4 per bushel.
For the week, the contract declined 1/2 cent, extending a sideways trading pattern that has persisted since late August. The market was anchored by ample old-crop supplies and rising private estimates of the US 2017 corn yield ahead of the US Department of Agriculture's monthly supply/demand reports next week.
Fresh export demand lent underlying support. The USDA said private exporters sold 102,400 tonnes of US corn to Mexico and another 135,000 tonnes to South Korea, all for delivery in the 2017-18 marketing year that began September 1. The USDA also said private exporters sold 251,000 tonnes of US sorghum to unknown destinations for delivery in 2017-18.