CBOT corn ends higher on supportive USDA stocks view

CHICAGO, June 12 (Reuters) - Chicago Board of Trade corn futures ended higher on Thursday after a choppy trading session, supported by tighter-than-expected stocks forecasts in a monthly U.S. government crop report and inter-market spreading against falling wheat and soybean futures, traders said.

• CBOT July corn CN25 settled up 1-1/2 cents at $4.38-1/2 per bushel and new-crop December corn CZ25 ended up 3/4 cent at $4.40-1/2 a bushel.

• The U.S. Department of Agriculture lowered its forecast of U.S. 2024/25 corn ending stocks to 1.365 billion bushels, down from 1.415 billion in May and below an average of analyst expectations, reflecting an increased estimate of 2024/25 corn exports.

• The USDA also lowered its forecast of global 2025/26 corn inventories to 275.24 million metric tons, down 2.6 million tons from its May view.

• A weaker dollar .DXY lent support, in theory making U.S. grains more competitive on the world export market. The dollar slumped on weaker-than-expected U.S. inflation data for May.

• Commodity funds held a net short position in CBOT corn futures, leaving the market open to short-covering rallies.

• The USDA reported net export sales of U.S. old-crop corn in the week ended June 5 at 791, 300 metric tons, toward the low end of trade expectations for 700,000 to 1,200,000 tons. EXP/CORN