Corn Concerns Push Ethanol Higher

Rising demand for corn exports from the United States pushed up the price of ethanol futures for the second day in a row, as worries over production costs pressured ethanol higher.

Assumptions the distilleries will be forced to compete for supply with foreign buyers, drove corn to a three-week high Wednesday.

On the Chicago Board of Trade, denatured ethanol for February delivery climbed 0.2 cent to $2.169 a gallon.

Corn futures for March delivery rose 3 cents, or 0.5 percent, to $6.42 a bushel in Chicago.

In the ethanol cash market, prices rose in New York 1.5 cents, or 0.7 percent, to $2.285; on the West Coast it was up 2 cents, or 0.9 percent, to $2.295; in Chicago it increased 2.5 cents, or 1.2 percent, to $2.18; and in the U.S. Gulf it jumped 2 cents, or 0.9 percent, to $2.265.