Reuters | Shares of Potash Corp of Saskatchewan rose more than 3 percent on Thursday, as corn futures moved higher following bullish data in the latest U.S. Department of Agriculture crop report.

The USDA crop report forecast 2010-11 U.S. year-end corn stocks at 1.573 billion bushels, below analyst expectations for 1.806 billion bushels. The agency also forecast 2009-10 year-end stocks at 1.603 billion bushels, below analyst expectations for 1.714 billion bushels.

As of 11:09 a.m. EDT, Chicago Board of Trade July corn was up more than 6 cents at $3.44-1/2 per bushel.

The report also forecast that China is expected to import 1 million tons of corn from the United States in the 2009-10 crop year, up from previous USDA forecast of 300,000 tons.