Corn Showing Gains as Ethanol Production Explodes to New Record

Group 1 - Corn futures are experiencing gains of 1 to 2 ½ cents, with the national average cash corn price rising by 2 ½ cents to $3.84 3/4 [1] - Ethanol production has surged by 98,000 barrels per day week-over-week, representing an increase of 8.92%, reaching a record of 1.196 million barrels per day, which is 5.75% above the previous record [2] - Ethanol stocks have increased by 821,000 barrels to 24.473 million barrels, with significant builds in the Gulf and East Coast regions, indicating preparations for potential exports [2] Group 2 - South Korean importers have purchased a total of 402,000 MT of corn, with 136,000 MT confirmed as a private export sale from the US [3] - The USDA Export Sales data is anticipated to show corn sales between 0.6 to 1.4 MMT for the week of January 8 [3] - Current corn prices for various contracts are as follows: Mar 26 Corn at $4.22 (up 2 1/4 cents), Nearby Cash at $3.84 3/4 (up 2 1/2 cents), May 26 Corn at $4.29 3/4 (up 2 cents), and Jul 26 Corn at $4.35 3/4 (up 1 1/4 cents) [3]