Corn Prices Pick Up on Signs of Higher Demand

Corn futures ended higher for the first time in seven days Friday, as traders saw signs of higher demand for the grain.

Corn for July delivery rose 10 cents, or 2.2 percent, to settle at $4.59 a bushel.

Corn has been falling steadily over the last month, from a recent high of $5.17 a bushel on May 6. Traders now anticipate that better growing conditions will lead to a larger crop than the market had been expecting.

Cash prices for corn also rose as demand picked up from commercial users such as ethanol makers and livestock farmers, said Brandon Marshall, a commodities analyst with Northstar Commodity in Minneapolis.

Wheat rose 12.5 cents, or 2.1 percent, to $6.18 a bushel. Soybeans dropped 3.5 cents to $14.57 a bushel.

In metals trading, August gold slipped 80 cents, or 0.1 percent, to $1,252.50 an ounce, and silver for July delivery fell nine cents, or 0.5 percent, to $18.99 an ounce.

Platinum for July delivery rose $7.90, or 0.5 percent, to $1,453 an ounce, and September palladium rose $4.80, or 0.6 percent, to $844.25 an ounce.

July copper fell four cents, or 1.3 percent, to $3.05 a pound.