Arabica coffee stumbles after hitting 7-month high

LONDON: Arabica coffee futures on ICE fell on Tuesday as the market consolidated after hitting a seven-month high in the previous session on concerns over a forecast cold snap that could hurt crops in top producer Brazil.

COFFEE

* September arabica coffee fell 1.9 cents, or 1.7%, to $1.0955 per lb at 1407 GMT, after touching $1.1410 on Monday, its highest since Nov. 29.

* Kona Haque, head of research at ED&F Man, said with the funds being so short for so long and the dollar weakening, frost risk in the southern part of Brazil was enough to spark a short covering rally, with some funds even going long.

* "We're still oversupplied but that's been priced into the market for quite a long time," she added.

* Brazil exported 2.80 million 60-kg bags of coffee in June, up from 2.16 million bags a year ago, government data showed.

* In the wider markets, the dollar edged lower as optimism from a weekend trade truce between the United States and China faded.

* A weaker dollar and stronger real tends to discourage selling by Brazilian producers.

* September robusta coffee fell $28, or 1.9%, to $1,446 per tonne, after touching a more than three-week peak of $1,489 on Monday.

SUGAR

* October raw sugar lost 0.23 cents, or 1.8%, to trade at 12.35 cents per lb.

* There are continued concerns that a weaker-than-normal monsoon in India, a top sugar producer, could curtail sugar production there just as Brazil, another top producer, reduces its output in favour of ethanol.

* Brazil exported 1.40 million tonnes of raw sugar in June, down from 1.71 million tonnes a year ago, government data showed.

* "The uncertainty of the Indian monsoon continues to underpin prices but producer selling above the market and a much reduced fund short position mean the up-side maybe also limited," said a dealer.

* August white sugar fell $4.60, or 1.4%, to $322.30 per tonne.

COCOA

* September New York cocoa fell $6, or 0.2%, to $2,495 per tonne.

* September London cocoa fell 2 pounds, or 0.1%, to 1,842 pounds per tonne.

* Cocoa arrivals at ports in top grower Ivory Coast reached 2.098 million tonnes between Oct. 1 and June 30, exporters estimated on Monday, up about 11% year on year.