Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT) grains futures closed higher on Thursday with wheat rebounding due to sharply increasing export sales. The most active corn contract for December delivery rose 0.5 cent, or 0.14 percent, to 3.49 dollars per bushel. December wheat delivery climbed 2.75 cents, or 0.64 percent, to 4.3275 dollars per bushel. November soybeans went up 2.25 cent,or 0.23 percent, to 9.865 dollars per bushel.

CBOT floor brokers estimated that funds bought 1,500 contracts of corn, 2,500 contracts of wheat and 2,500 contracts of soybeans.

The official weekly export sales report released Thursday morning showed that for the week ending Oct. 12, US exporters sold 22.6 million bushels of corn, hitting a nine week high.

The better-than-expected data boosted wheat futures, which posted significant gains following three consecutive days of decline.

The U.S. soybean sales were reported at 46.9 million bushels, less than the previous week. However, the U.S. daily export reporting system showed new sales of 14 million bushels of soybeans to China, which pushed the soybeans higher.

The corn prices remained almost unchanged on Thursday.