Friday, 03 July 2015 18:29
LONDON: Robusta coffee futures eased in light volumes on Friday, with traders focused on a wide front-month premium, while London white sugar edged higher and London cocoa steadied.
US softs markets were shut for the Independence Day holiday weekend.
Robusta traders focused on the July/September spread, which fell back to about $ 105 a tonne after peaking earlier in the session at around $ 135, a level last touched on Monday.
The move comes after the premium tumbled to $ 35 on Wednesday, which was July’s first notice day. September robusta traded down $ 8, or 0.5 percent, at $ 1,737 a tonne at 1219 GMT.
“There has been some conillon (Brazilian robusta) hedging,” one senior European trader said.
London white sugar futures edged higher, buoyed by a softer dollar.
Rabobank said in its latest quarterly report that better than expected sugar production from India and Thailand appeared to have consolidated a global surplus projected for 2014/15, bringing stocks to record levels.
“The sugar pipeline is full for the major importers after a prolonged period of low prices, suggesting that further price falls will do little for immediate sugar demand,” Rabobank said.
“The preliminary global supply/demand balance for 2015/16 looks headed for a deficit after five consecutive years of surplus, but the impact on prices may be limited.”
August white sugar futures traded up $ 4.70, or 1.3 percent, at $ 373 a tonne.
London cocoa futures eased in thin volumes, with dealers turning their attention to quarterly cocoa grind data, a measure of demand, due to be released in Europe on July 14 and North America on July 16.
September London cocoa was down 12 pounds, or 0.6 percent, at 2,172 pounds a tonne.
