With fund investors selling-off big positions, the CME Group commodities are expected to start lower Thursday. The early calls for the commodities on Thursday, January 3, 2012, are mostly lower. Corn is seen opening 2-4 cents lower. Soybeans are seen 8-10 cents lower and wheat mixed.

In overnight trading, the March corn futures contract traded 2 cents lore at  $6.88 per bushel. January soybean futures traded 11 cents lower at $13.94 per bushel, and March wheat traded 1 cent lower at $7.54. For January soybean meal futures, the contract traded $5.90 per short ton lower at $401.20. January soybean oil futures traded $0.13 cents lower at $50.39. 

The outside markets are favorable for Thursday's grain trade. The real factors driving the calls will be the mixed overnight markets.

Discuss the corn, soybean and wheat markets in Marketing Talk.