LONDON: Cocoa futures on ICE eased on Monday as buying interest waned and worries about weather in top grower Ivory Coast began to subside, while arabica coffee turned higher on more supportive chart signals.
COCOA
December London cocoa was down 9 pounds, or 0.6 percent, at 1,583 pounds a tonne by 1331 GMT, after hitting a session low of 1,566 pounds.
December New York cocoa also slipped $2, or 0.1 percent, at $2,136 a tonne.
Dealers noted both markets were giving back some of the gains made last week, when prices rallied sharply on currency and expectations of strong grind data in Asia and North America.
But speculative short-covering has now petered out and dealers said higher prices had deterred some emerging buyers.
"I suspect that we're just finding overall equilibrium," said one dealer. "You have to wonder though what's really going to take us higher from here."
Sentiment was also dampened by drier weather in Ivory Coast where rains have raised concerns about delays to the harvest, lending support to prices.
"We've certainly had slower arrivals," the dealer said. "But the recent rains have subsided and things are looking a little bit better. So I think the immediate concerns may be have been a little bit premature."
Cocoa arrivals at ports in top grower Ivory Coast reached around 113,000 tonnes by Oct. 22 since the start of the season on Oct. 1, exporters estimated, down from 154,000 tonnes in the same period last season.
COFFEE
December arabica coffee rose 0.95 cent, or 0.8 percent, to $1.2620 per lb, reversing course after slipping to $1.2385.
Dealers noted technical signals pointed to the market being oversold, after it tumbled on Friday.
Market participants also remained focused on the weather in Brazil, where there have recently been favourable rains but it is still not clear whether they will be sufficient to relieve recent dryness in key coffee growing regions.
Speculators increased their net short position in arabica coffee to the highest since July's record in the week to Oct. 17, exchange data showed on Friday.
November robusta coffee was up $3, or 0.2 percent, at $2,023 per tonne.
SUGAR
March raw sugar was down 0.04 cent, or 0.3 percent, at 13.96 cents per lb.
December white sugar was down $0.20, or 0.1 percent, at $368.60 a tonne.
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