Strong competition for beans kept farmgate prices well above the recommended 400 CFA per ($0.82) kg guideline price in Ivory Coast's main cocoa zones from June 18-24, Coffee and Cocoa Bourse (BCC) data showed on Tuesday.
A purchases manager for a European exporter based in Abidjan said competition among buyers had been fierce as exporters put up their rates to secure beans, fearing supplies in the bush would tail off sharply in the course of the next month. "Prices are still high in the bush and vary between 450 CFA per ($0.925) kilo and 500," he said.
"Cocoa is becoming scarce. Fears that it may be hard to have cocoa by the end of July are pushing many buyers to put their prices up to make sure they get plenty of beans now," he said. In the coastal region of San Pedro, the average price rose 25 CFA francs per kg to an unusually high 545 CFA in the spell.
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