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CHICAGO, Feb. 17 (Xinhua) -- Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT) grains futures close lower on Friday, as traders liquidated long positions ahead of a U.S. holiday weekend, and following a fund-driven rally seen as lacking fundamental drivers
The most active corn contract for March delivery fell 5.25 cents, or 1.41 percent, to 3.6825 dollars per bushel. March wheat delivery fell 7 cents, or 1.54 percent, to 4.4775 dollars per bushel. March soybeans dropped 17.5 cents, or 1.65 percent, to 10.4375 dollars per bushel.
In the outside markets, the Brent crude oil market is 0.10 dollar per barrel lower, the U.S. dollar is higher, and the Dow Jones Industrials are 43 points lower.
DeAnne Hawthorne-Lahre, StatFutures co-founder and trader, says that the news is bearish for the soybean market.
"I'm hearing a couple of bean cargoes switched form Pacific Northwest port to Brazil," she says.
The recent wheat rally is considered overdone, and ownership internals have changed.
"Corn peeked its head at 4.00 dollars, and has turned as well, as ownership reality settling in there," Hawthorne-Lahre says.
Also on Friday, the USDA announced fresh exports. Private exporters reported to the U.S. Department of Agriculture export sales of 194,112 tonnes of corn for delivery to Japan. Of the total, 60,000 tonnes is for delivery during the 2016/2017 marketing year and 134,112 tonnes is for delivery during the 2017/2018 marketing year.
The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission was set to release its weekly Commitments of Traders report later on Friday, which will show funds' net positions in major commodities.
Traders await fresh U.S. acreage forecasts from the U.S. Department of Agriculture's annual outlook forum next week. Preliminary forecasts released by the USDA in November projected a drop in U.S. corn plantings for 2017 and an increase in soybean acreage.
The wheat market will get an indication of international demand in a tender being held on Friday by Egypt. U.S. wheat was among the origins offered, but was not expected to rival cheaper bids of Black Sea wheat in the ongoing tender.
