Sugar futures closed lower in choppy dealings on Friday amid profit-taking on the last trading day of July, while cocoa closed little changed as its spreads hit contract lows on heavy West African supplies. Coffee traded higher, while the commodity complex hit its biggest one-day loss in two weeks as investors fled to safe havens on concern about sovereign debt crises on both sides of the Atlantic.
October white sugar on Liffe fell $11.60 to close at $777.40 per tonne, after touching a contract high of $821.00 on Monday. A European broker said in a daily report that the centre-south Brazil vessel line-up had shrunk after big delays in recent months. The delays had been caused by a lack of availability of cane after a slow start to the harvest.
London December cocoa finished 9 pounds lower at 1,885 pounds per tonne. Valid cocoa stocks in NYSE Liffe's nominated warehouses as of July 25 rose to 107,470 tonnes from 101,770 on July 11, exchange data showed. September robusta coffee on Liffe closed up $8 at $2,092 per tonne.
"If you want to buy robusta, you can possibly buy it more cheaply in Europe than at origin," a European dealer said. Certified stocks in European warehouses fell for the first time in months as dealers said a shortage of offers for coffee at origin was making roasters look to European stocks to meet their needs.
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