"Prices were steady to $.03 higher while spreads firmed. Dec-26 futures ended a run of 4 consecutive lower closes. Speculative traders sold another 12k contracts yesterday, reducing their long position to 126k. They were likely modest buyers today. O.I. from yesterday however was up 19k contracts, an indication of fresh shorts entering the market, likely offset by end user buying taking advantage of the price collapse. That said however, the path of least resistance remains lower until U.S. demand improves and/or we see a more threatening SA forecast. Ethanol production increased to 329 mil. gallons last week, up from 322 mil. the previous week while up 2.5% YOY. Production was above expectations. There was 110 mil. bu. of corn used in the production process, or 15.7 mil. bu. per day, above the 15.56 mbd needed to reach the USDA usage forecast of 5.650 bil. bu.," noted Mark Soderberg with ADM Investor Services.