Johannesburg - Yellow-corn futures traded in South Africa reached a seven-week high after prices increased in the US market.
The grain for delivery in December rose 0.1 percent to 2,194 rand ($222) a metric ton by the close on the South African Futures Exchange in Johannesburg.
That was the highest settlement since September 3 for a most-active contract and the seventh advance in a row, the longest streak since June 2008, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.
Corn for the same delivery month added 0.6 percent to $4.44 a bushel by the close yesterday on the Chicago Board of Trade.
Warm conditions in the next two weeks in parts of the former Soviet Union will help farmers finish sowing in the southern region and boost crops in the north before winter, Commodity Weather Group LLC in Bethesda, Maryland, said in a report.
“Corn futures gained slightly, mainly tracking the US prices, which increased because of the better weather conditions,” Brink van Wyk a trader at BVG (Pty) Ltd., said by phone from South Africa’s North West province.
White corn for delivery in December settled unchanged at 2,381 rand a ton.
South Africa is the continent’s biggest corn producer.
A meal made from white corn is a staple food in the nation and the yellow variety is mostly fed to animals.
Wheat for delivery in December slumped 0.5 percent to 3,482 rand a ton.
Soybeans for the same delivery month fell 0.3 percent to 5,630 rand a ton. - Bloomberg News