Corn Falls From Five-Month High as U.S. Inventory Forecast Tops Estimates

Corn futures fell from a five-month high after a government forecast on inventories topped estimates by analysts in the U.S., the world’s biggest producer.

Reserves will be 1.373 billion bushels by Aug. 31, 2011, the U.S. Department of Agriculture said today in a report. The average estimate of 23 analysts surveyed by Bloomberg News was 1.292 billion. This year, stockpiles will be 1.478 billion, the agency said. Before today, corn jumped 15 percent since June 29 after the USDA said that farmers planted less then intended.

“People were a little disappointed,” said Greg Grow, the director of agribusiness at Archer Financial Services Inc. in Chicago. “We had a big rally, so traders are lightening up on some positions.”

Corn futures for December delivery fell 1.25 cents, or 0.3 percent, to $3.95 a bushel at 10:34 a.m. on the Chicago Board of Trade. Yesterday, the most-active contract reached $3.975, the highest level since Jan. 12.

Corn is the biggest U.S. crop, valued at $48.6 billion in 2009, government figures show.

To contact the reporter on this story: Jeff Wilson in Chicago at jwilson29@bloomberg.net

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