CBOT futures settle lower amid massive sell-off

CHICAGO, April 13 (Xinhua) -- Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT) agricultural commodities closed lower on Friday amid massive sell-off ahead of the weekend.

The most active corn contract for May delivery fell 2.5 cents, or 0.64 percent to settle at 3.8625 dollars per bushel. May wheat delivery went down 8.5 cents, or 1.77 percent to close at 4.725 dollars per bushel. May soybeans were down 6.5 cents, or 0.61 percent to settle at 10.5425 dollars per bushel.

CBOT floor brokers reported that funds sold 6,000 contracts of corn, 4,600 contracts of soybeans, and 4,200 contracts of wheat. Traders apparently tried to take off risk ahead of the weekend and lock in profits.

Wheat prices continued to fall as weather conditions improved with more rainfalls on the way for the central and southern U.S. plains. Persistent dryness affected the wheat crops there for quite a long time.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture reported recent export sales of soybeans reached 2,464,500 metric tons, beating the trade's expectation between 800,000-1,700,000 metric tons for the first week of April.

However, the sales to China declined, which again triggered concerns among U.S. farmers and CBOT traders over unsolved trade disputes between the two countries. Enditem