Raw sugar recovers after hitting near two-month low

LONDON: Raw sugar futures on ICE recovered on Tuesday after hitting near two-month lows as poor demand weighed on prices and risk-off sentiment prevailed in the broader financial markets.

Cocoa and coffee rose, meanwhile.

Sugar

October raw sugar, which expires on Thursday, rose 1.4% to 18.98 cents per lb at 1450 GMT, having hit its lowest level since early August at 18.49.

October's discount to March held at around 0.90 cent, indicating there was little appetite to take delivery of sugar against the contract expiry.

Looking further ahead, Citi said it sees the market recording a deficit of around 3.7 million tonnes in the upcoming 2021/22 season due to crop downgrades in Brazil.

December white sugar rose 1.1% to $507.80 a tonne.

Raw sugar sees front-month discount widen on weak demand

Coffee

December arabica coffee rose 1.3% to $1.9885 per lb, having hit its highest price since late August at $2.0035.

Dealers cited jitters over crucial rains needed to ensure flowering in top producer Brazil, with irregular rainfall registered this past weekend.

They added, however, that more wet weather is expected this coming weekend, which should lead prices lower so long as it does not disappoint.

November robusta coffee rose 0.7% to $2,130 a tonne.

Cocoa

December New York cocoa rose 0.2% to $2,551 a tonne, having hit a near 6-week low on Monday.

Citi said cocoa balances are tightening from a hefty 2020/21 surplus of around 300,000 tonnes this season to a deficit of around 100,000 next season due to issues with the tree crop in Ghana and reduced fertilizer input.

December London cocoa rose 1.5% to 1,792 pounds per tonne?.