LONDON: Cocoa futures in both New York and London fell to two-week lows on Thursday, weighed down by hedge selling and concerns about weak demand, while raw sugar and coffee prices also weakened.
March New York cocoa was down $8, or 0.3%, at $2,496 a tonne at 1459 GMT after dipping to a two-week low of $2,478 a tonne.
Dealers said hedge selling related to trade in Ivorian cocoa in the physical market had helped to exert downward pressure on prices.
A slowdown in demand driven by the COVID-19 pandemic also remained a bearish influence, with chocolate makers seeing reduced impulse purchases and out-of-home consumption.
Dealers noted March’s premium to May had led to a pick-up in grading activity with certified stocks rising to 1,372 lots as of Jan. 27, up from 1,033 lots a week earlier.
March London cocoa fell 1 pound, or 0.1%, to 1,719 pounds a tonne after slipping to a two-week low of 1,703 pounds.
March raw sugar fell 0.04 cents, or 0.25%, to 15.76 cents per lb.
Dealers said the market has lost upward momentum after climbing to the highest in more than 3-1/2 years earlier this month, but there remained solid support around 15.50 cents.
March white sugar rose $1.40, or 0.3%, to $445.80 a tonne. Germany’s second largest sugar refiner Nordzucker on Thursday said it has returned to profit as the EU sugar market recovered and following a cost-saving programme. March arabica coffee fell 0.5 cents, or 0.4%, to $1.25 per lb. March robusta coffee was down $9, or 0.7%, at $1,309 a tonne.
Vietnam’s domestic coffee prices remained little changed on Thursday from a week earlier, as the country’s harvest came to an end, traders said on Thursday.
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