US cocoa futures closed firm and near session highs on Thursday, recouping some of the losses from Wednesday on chart-based support, traders said. "We're finding some support at that $1,900-level. The market's trading on technical, (there's) just really not much news going on right now," one trader said about the key contract September.
The New York Board of Trade front-month July contract rose $10 to settle at $1,935, while benchmark September futures gained $18 to $1,936 in dealings from $1,938 to $1,911, a low matching that of the previous session.
The rest ranged from $15 to $19 higher. Light origin selling prevented stronger gains, traders said. The September contract trading on the IntercontinentalExchange NYBOT electronic platform was up $12 at $1,930, at 12:57 pm EDT (1657 GMT), moving from $1,905 to $1,937. The rest ranged from $9 to $14 higher. Electronic trading ends at 3:15 pm. The Liffe benchmark September cocoa futures contract rose 6 pounds, ending at 1,056 pounds after ranging from 1,041 pounds to 1,056 pounds.
In related news, Nigerian cocoa due for delivery to Europe this month may be delayed if a general strike in protest against a rise in fuel prices is not resolved in a few days, traders said on Thursday. The indefinite strike began on Wednesday and has closed all Nigerian general cargo ports, preventing exports of cocoa from the world's fourth largest grower.
The strike was not seen buoying prices in New York on Thursday, however, some traders said. In the No 3 producer, rains in Indonesia's cocoa growing belt of Slaws island have hampered the cocoa harvest, disrupting supplies while gains in cocoa futures pushed local prices up.
NYBOT estimated open-outcry volume around noon at a light 625 lots, compared to the 1,683 contracts that traded in open-outcry on Wednesday, when 7,610 contracts traded on the ICE electronic platform. Open interest dropped 934 lots to 141,861 as of June 20.
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