CHICAGO, Aug. 11 -- Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT) agricultural futures rose across the board on Thursday, led by corn.

The most active corn contract for December delivery rose 9.25 cents, or 1.5 percent, to settle at 6.2775 U.S. dollars per bushel. September wheat gained 11 cents, or 1.38 percent, to settle at 8.1075 dollars per bushel. November soybean climbed 20.75 cents, or 1.45 percent, to settle at 14.485 dollars per bushel.

Exceptionally tight old crop U.S. soybean stocks with U.S. ethanol producers searching for old crop corn have helped support the rally. Fund buying inflows have pushed November soybeans back to challenging 14.50 dollars and December corn 6.30-dollar resistance.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) August Crop report is due out Friday. Traders are leaning to lower than estimated yields and a bullish report surprise. It is the September report that will hold the market's attention. Chicago-based research company AgResource remains longer term bullish.

The USDA weekly export sales report shows net new sales of 13.2 million bushels of U.S. wheat, net cancellation of 2.5 million bushels of old crop and purchase of 17.5 million bushels of new crop soybeans, and sales of 7.6 million bushels of old and like amount of new crop corn.

For respective crop years to date, the United States has sold 316 million bushels of wheat, down 4 million bushels from last year; 2,395 million bushels of corn, down 13 percent; and 2,184 million bushels of soybeans, down 4 percent.

It is mostly dry weather across the Central United States. A few lite showers are possible across Minnesota and Iowa from a passing weak front before dry weather returns for the weekend. The remainder of the Plains and the Western Midwest holds in an arid upper air flow into next weekend.

  - Xinhua