Chicago corn, wheat plunge on weak oil

By Chikafumi Hodo TOKYO (Reuters) - Chicago corn and wheat futures fell more than 2 percent on Friday as weakness in oil prices and other commodities spurred investors to lock in profits after robust gains the previous day. Investment funds, taking their cue from the sell-off in commodities in Friday morning trade, were heavy sellers of grains, traders said. "Technical selling drove down grain prices in the after-hours session, mostly a reflection of the downward trend for oil prices and a strong dollar," said Kenji Kobayashi, grains analyst at Kanetsu Asset Management. "Grains are still in a technical downward phase. Weak data for soybeans yesterday weighed on soybeans prices and the bearish mood is spreading to other commodities." As of 5:54 a.m. EDT, September corn futures were trading at $5.44 per bushel in electronic... [read full story]