NEW YORK/LONDON: Arabica coffee futures on ICE tumbled more than 3 percent to a 5-1/2-month low on Thursday, while raw sugar fell to a five-week trough, as a slump in Brazil's currency pressured prices.
Cocoa prices fell deeper into technically oversold levels as they extended losses to multi-month lows, joining broader weakness as the 19-market Thomson Reuters CoreCommodity Index fell to a seven-week low.
COFFEE
March arabica coffee settled down 3.2 cents, or 2.5 percent, at $1.229 per lb, after dropping to $1.221, the lowest since June 23.
Total open interest rose by more than 2,000 lots to 193,248 lots on Wednesday, the first rise in 22 sessions, ICE data showed.
The weak Brazilian real fell sharply against the US dollar, attracting selling pressure, traders said.
"There has been limited market reaction to four-year lows in Brazilian export figures as we reach the end of 2017, as buyers are willing to wait for the additional supply to come online," said BMI Research in a note, pointing to good production prospects in Colombian and Brazil's next crop.
January robusta coffee settled down $28, or 1.59 percent, at $1,730 per tonne.
SUGAR
March raw sugar settled down 0.14 cent, or 1 percent, at 14.31 cents per lb, after falling to the spot contract's weakest since Nov. 2.
The weak Brazilian real also pressured sugar prices, as it encourages producers to sell by increasing their returns in local currency terms.
"The liquidation shows that despite the 'ethanol story' in Brazil, traders have been reacting to the continuing estimates of large sugar surpluses," Nick Penney, senior trader at Sucden Financial said in a note.
"The market is still juggling a hefty surplus but now lacks a buyer that needs to buy at these levels," said Tobin Gorey of the Commonwealth Bank of Australia.
March white sugar settled down $4.10, or 1.1 percent, at $371.20 per tonne.
COCOA
March London cocoa settled down 17 pounds, or 1.2 percent, at 1,391 pounds per tonne after slipping to a seven-month low of 1,386 pounds.
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