DES MOINES, Iowa (Agriculture.com)--Despite unfavorable outside markets, the CME Group wheat, corn and soybean prices finished higher Friday.  

March corn futures closed 4 cents higher at $5.83. The Jan. soybean contract closed 18 1/4 cents higher at $11.39 1/2. The March wheat futures settled 4 1/2 cents higher at $5.83 3/4. The January soymeal futures contract finished $7.40 per short ton higher at $290.30. The January soyoil futures closed $0.57 lower at $49.93.

In the outside markets, the NYMEX crude oil is $0.49 per barrel lower, the dollar is higher and the Dow Jones Industrials are down 22 points.

Jack Scoville, PRICE Futures Group vice president, says speculators holding short trade positions are covering those shorts based on dry weather in Brazil and Argentina.

"Early dollar weakness also supportive, but I think most of this is a market where specs are short and it is not raining in South America.  So, there has been some light volume buying just on that. Corn is getting hurt down in South America now, but the market thinks beans when it comes to SA.  A nice close and I think we will be sideways or higher next week depending on the rain," Scoville says.