Thursday, 10 September 2015 16:46
LONDON: New York cocoa futures hit a seven-week high on Thursday on fund buying buoyed by concerns over dry weather in top grower Ivory Coast, while sugar steadied after Brazilian cane crop data in line with expectations.
Arabica and robusta coffee futures fell under pressure from a slightly firmer dollar.
December New York cocoa was up $ 11, or 0.3 percent, at $ 3,281 a tonne at 1012 GMT, having touched $ 3,284, its highest since late July.
London December cocoa was up 4 pounds, or 0.2 percent, at 2,208 pounds a tonne.
“It’s system funds still buying it,” one London-based cocoa futures broker said, referring to computer-generated buying by investment funds.
“I can’t see this market coming off until the elections in Ivory Coast are over and done with.”
In a daily market report, Commerzbank said: “The increases (in cocoa on Wednesday) were triggered by fears among market participants that dry weather could slow bean development in Ivory Coast
“What is more, the presidential elections to be held next month in Ivory Coast are already casting their shadow – turmoil during the last elections almost five years ago drove up prices sharply.”
October raw sugar eased 0.09 cents, or 0.8 percent, to 11.34 cents per pound, steadying after Wednesday’s rally on weather concerns in top producer Brazil, where widespread heavy rain in the southeast of the country is reaching the region’s coffee and sugar cane plantations.
Data from Brazil’s main cane region on Wednesday was largely within expectations.
Industry association Unica’s data showed cane mills in Brazil’s centre-south region produced 2.84 million tonnes of sugar in the second half of August, at the low end of market expectations, while mills’ allocation of cane to ethanol was above market expectations at 56.8 percent.
“The second half of August details from Unica show a very similar cane crush as 12 months ago but, with a lower sugar content and a lower sugar mix,” a senior London-based sugar analyst said.
October white sugar traded down $ 3.60, or 1 percent, at $ 342.40 a tonne.
December arabica coffee fell 2.45 cents, or 2 percent, at $ 1.1865 per pound on technically driven selling. It had earlier droped to a session low of $ 1.1795, within sight of last week’s 1-1/2-year low of $ 1.1775.
November robusta coffee futures traded down $ 18, or 1.1 percent, at $ 1,586 a tonne.
