Corn closes higher ahead of USDA weekly report

Corn futures rose Thursday, to shrug off a firm dollar, after the USDA's weekly report.

Corn futures saw sales coverage ahead of the US Department of Agriculture report on harvest and crop quality on Friday.

The US National Weather Service forecast hot and dry weather in the central and western regions, which could damage crops in terms of quantities and quality.

The USDA also announced exporting 599,000 tonnes of corn in the week ending July 2.

The dollar index rose against a basket of currencies by 0.3% to 96.7 points as of 21:39 GMT, after hitting an intraday high of 96.8 a low of 96.2.

Corn September futures rose 0.9% to close at $3.48 a bushel, after hitting a day high of $3.55 and a low of $3.45.