The rally in corn has been fuelled by results from a widely followed Midwest field tour last week that projected this year's U.S. crop well below the U.S. Department of Agriculture's current forecast.
The USDA, meanwhile, on Monday estimated that U.S. corn crop conditions fell more sharply last week than anticipated by analysts.
"Corn prices (are) driven by the new deterioration in the crop's condition and the prospect of a decrease in yields," Argus analysts said, adding that a large planted area expected in Argentina could provide some supply relief.
In Argentina, a major corn exporter, the El Niño weather phenomenon should bring moisture even as pest risks and higher costs weigh on farmers' plans, the Buenos Aires Grain Exchange said on Tuesday.
However, a virtual halt to grain loadings at Russian and Ukrainian Black Sea ports, due to tit-for-tat attacks in recent weeks, was casting doubt over flows of Ukrainian corn and particularly Russian wheat.
Repair works at NKHP, one of three grain terminals at Russia's main Black Sea export port of Novorossiysk, could take up to four months, the company said on Wednesday.
The news underscored the risk of prolonged disruption, cooling hopes that diplomatic initiatives and Russian export measures, including a reported plan to scrap an export tax, would ease the situation.
"The situation in the Black Sea - in Russia and Ukraine - is not changing. The announcements on both sides confirm a blocked and complex situation for the flow of agricultural production at the beginning of the campaign," Argus said.
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