Chicago Board of Trade corn futures ended near unchanged on Monday as rising trade tensions and spillover pressure from lower soybeans offset support from a lower-than-expected government planting projection released late last week. CBOT May corn settled down 1/2 cent at $3.87-1/4 per bushel after earlier hitting a 2-1/2 week high of $3.92-1/2.

A bullish US Department of Agriculture US corn acreage projection last week fuelled early-session gains. Forecasts for cold, wet spring that could delay plantings in US Midwest were also seen as supportive. Concerns of a tit-for-tat trade war with China weighed on agricultural commodities after Beijing announced higher tariffs on a long list of US goods, including pork and ethanol.

Copyright Reuters, 2018