Chicago - UPI
Grain futures closed lower on the Chicago Board of Trade Wednesday with the dollar index off 0.12 percent to 81.24 on the International Exchange. Corn was off 11 3/4 to off 17 1/4, soybeans were off 17 1/2 to off 23, wheat was 15 1/2 to off 20 1/4 and oats were off 5 1/4 to off 8 3/4. Corn prices fell as the harvest got under way, with the crop 10 percent harvested as of this week, the U.S. Department of Agriculture said Tuesday in a holiday-delayed report. Wheat found support from a Ukrainian Agriculture Ministry report that pegged wheat for export at 4 million metric tons, notably shy of the USDA estimate of 6 million metric tons. Soybean prices dropped with the cash market soft and equities flat on Wall Street. The prices: Corn: Sep 7.89 3/4 off 17 1/4, Dec 7.90 3/4 off 14 1/4, Mar 7.94 3/4 off 13, May 7.91 off 11 3/4. Soybeans: Sep 17.48 off 23, Nov 17.47 1/2 off 20 3/4, Jan 17.46 1/4 off 20, Mar 16.94 1/2 off 17 1/2. Wheat: Sep 8.45 3/4 off 20 1/4, Dec 8.67 3/4 off 21, Mar 8.80 1/2 off 19, May 8.82 off 15 1/2. Oats: Sep 3.81 off 5 1/4, Dec 3.87 off 8 1/4, Mar 3.85 3/4 off 8 3/4, May 3.85 1/4 off 8 1/4.