Corn futures settle higher, lifted by improved demand

Corn futures rose on Thursday, and closed higher on the Chicago commodity exchange (CBOT), buoyed by signs of improved US domestic demand and exports.

This came despite the lingering uncertainty around the US-China trade talks and the mounting doubts about the two countries' ability to agree on the first phase of the trade deal.

President Donald Trump has threatened to increase the Chinese tariffs, if China failed to reach the first phase of the trade deal, and stated that Beijing didn't offer enough concessions to satisfy his administration.

Whilst, the Chinese Ministry of Commerce spokespersons stated that China is willing to work with the United States to resolve each other’s core concerns.

The US Department of Agriculture revealed that corn exports rose by 49% to 788K tonnes last week, and the Energy Information Administration (EIA) showed that US biofuels refineries demand on corn increased for the eighth straight week.

Corn December futures rose by 0.5% to $3.68 per bushel, and hit an intraday high of $3.69 and a low of $3.66.