CBOT corn ends firm on short covering, pre-holiday positioning

CHICAGO, July 3 (Reuters) - Chicago Board of Trade corn firmed on Thursday on short covering and positioning ahead of the long U.S. Independence Day holiday weekend, but closed well below session highs as the market hit technical resistance and selling tied to favorable U.S. crop weather, traders said.

• Markets will be closed on Friday for the holiday.

• CBOT September corn CU25 scaled to a two-week high before hitting overhead technical resistance at its 50-day moving average. The contract settled 2-1/4 cents higher at $4.20-1/4 per bushel, gaining 2.1% in the week.

• New-crop CBOT December corn CZ25 also reached a two-week peak before closing 3-1/2 cents higher at $4.37 a bushel. The contract finished up 2.3% for the week.

• The corn market has been anchored by generally favorable U.S. crop weather and expectations for a massive harvest in Brazil. Forecasts for warm temperatures and scattered showers in the U.S. Midwest over the next two weeks were seen as favoring crop growth as it enters its critical pollination stage of development.

• The U.S. Department of Agriculture on Thursday confirmed private sales of 150,000 metric tons of U.S. corn to undisclosed buyers for shipment in the 2024/25 marketing year.