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 About a dozen barge tows that had been stranded by the two-day
closure of a 50-mile (80 km) stretch of the river between Kampsville
and Versailles, Illinois, were allowed to transit south toward the
Mississippi River and on to the Gulf Coast, industry sources said.
But a force majeure declaration by exchange operator CME Group
remained in effect on Thursday afternoon for all of its corn and
soybean shipping stations because high water made barge loading
impossible at a majority of facilities on the river, spokesman Chris
Grams confirmed.
The Mississippi River and tributaries such as the Illinois and Ohio
rivers supply the bulk of corn and soybeans that are exported from
Gulf Coast terminals. Some 60 percent of all U.S. corn, soy and
wheat exports exit the country via the Gulf.
 Restrictions on commercial boat speeds remain in place for much of
the Illinois River from mile marker 187 near Lacon, Illinois, to
mile zero at its confluence with the Mississippi as vessel wakes
could damage levees and sand bag barriers protecting towns, the
Coast Guard said.
A temporary ban on recreational boat traffic remains in place from
mile marker 5 to mile marker 187.
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Cash premiums for corn shipped in barges to the Gulf Coast for
export slipped from a two-week high posted earlier in the week,
traders said.
Bids for barges loaded this month hit 43 cents a bushel over Chicago
Board of Trade September futures on Thursday afternoon, matching a
recent nine-month low for a spot basis bid, they said.
(Editing by Alan Crosby)
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