CBOT corn futures were down 0.1 percent to $3.81-1/4 a bushel. The most active corn futures were down 0.1 percent to $3.81-1/4 a bushel, having gained 0.5 percent in the previous session. Rumours of large-scale U.S. grain purchases by China riled markets recently, but official confirmation of such deals has not been available due to the partial U.S. government shutdown that has shuttered numerous divisions of the U.S. Department of Agriculture.