CHICAGO, Jan. 19 (Xinhua) -- Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT) agricultural futures closed mixed on Friday, with corn and wheat rising and soybean dropping slightly.

       The most active corn contract for March delivery rose 1.5 cents, or 0.34 percent, to settle at 4.455 U.S. dollars per bushel. March wheat climbed 7.75 cents, or 1.32 percent, to settle at 5.9325 dollars per bushel. March soybean fell 0.25 cents, or 0.02 percent, to settle at 12.1325 dollars per bushel.

       Soybean cooled on the back of weakness in soyoil. Soybean crush margins have stabilized at 0.90-1.00 dollars per bushel. Volume has thinned ahead of the weekend, with all eyes on the duration of coming dryness in Argentina.

       Rampant fund selling has paused. Chicago-based research company AgResource holds that corn and soybeans are deeply oversold.

       U.S. export demand recovered following the end of global holidays in late December and early January. U.S. corn sales in the week ending Jan. 11 totaled 49.3 million bushels, as against 19.2 million bushels in the previous week and the largest since early December; wheat sales totaled 26 million bushels, as against 5 million bushels in the prior week; soybean sales totaled 29 million bushels, as against 10 million bushels in the previous week.

       For respective crop years to date, U.S. exporters have sold 1,241 million bushels of corn, up 36 percent year on year; 592 million bushels of wheat, up 4 percent; and 1,374 million bushels of soybeans, down 18 percent.

       U.S. exporters sold 297,000 metric tons of soybeans to China Friday.

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       Other fresh news is lacking. Regular showers will return to Brazil by mid-next week.