Commercial buying surfaced at the day's lows, helping the market recovery. January rice closed 2-1/2 cents per hundredweight lower at $7.64, after falling 13-1/2 cents to $7.53 on Monday.
The back months were unchanged. Light volume made the market vulnerable to wide price swings. An estimated 287 futures and 15 options traded. That compared to the 287 contracts traded on Friday.
Man Financial was the featured buyer, traders said. Speculative selling on the open set weak tone as the market set back after last week's climb.
The weakness in the other CBOT grain markets was also bearish. There was little fresh news to stir much excitement. Cash markets continue to be quiet, traders said.