Futures for corn opened the week lower, with contracts down 1 to 2 cents following a Friday rally that saw gains of 2½ to 5 cents. The December contract fell 1.62% over the past week and had a preliminary open interest decline of 17,355 contracts, while other contracts increased by 22,077. The national average cash corn price rose by 5½ cents to $4.00¾ per bushel.
Export sales data released Friday indicated corn sales at 1.315 MMT, marking a five-week low and below the 2024/25 estimates of 1.25 to 2.6 MMT, with unknown destinations as the largest buyer at 603,500 MT. As of November 12, CFTC data revealed that managed money’s net long position increased to 109,989 contracts, a rise of 87,946 from the previous week, primarily due to short-covering.
Brazil’s first corn crop was 86% planted in the Center-South region as of November 14, exceeding last year’s 80% pace. December 2024 corn closed at $4.24, currently down 1½ cents, while nearby cash corn was at $4.00¾.
