South African maize futures ended lower on Thursday, in line with lower corn prices on the Chicago Board of Trade.
The near-dated May 2012 white maize contract shed R36.80 to R2,061.20 per ton, July 2012 white maize lost R26 to R2,034 per ton, and September 2012 white maize shaved off R21 to R2,070 per ton, according to preliminary I-Net Bridge data.
The near-dated May 2012 yellow maize contract was R14 in the red at R1,986 per ton, the July 2012 yellow maize contract was down R17 to R1,998 per ton and the September 2012 yellow maize contract dipped R14 to R2,030 per ton.
The May wheat contract dropped R49 to R2,691 per ton, July wheat erased R46 to R2,750 per ton, while the September 2012 wheat contract shed R45 to R2,810 per ton.
The US corn futures closed lower on Wednesday, as Gulf-region cash prices cooled and traders exited positions to reduce risk ahead of a key government report, Dow Jones Newswires reported.
The corn for July delivery, the most actively traded contract, fell 2.5%, to US$6.07 1/4 a bushel at the Chicago Board of Trade.
Corn fell along with wheat and soybean futures as traders braced for the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) to issue its latest supply-and-demand tables for major crops on Thursday.
Corn traders worried that the USDA could give a high forecast for domestic corn inventories at the end of the crop's next marketing year, which begins on September 1. A forecast above analyst expectations, which would likely be the result of a large US crop, could send futures lower. - I-Net Bridge