London cocoa hits lowest in nearly a year; sugar at 1-week low

NEW YORK/LONDON: London cocoa futures on ICE hit their lowest in nearly a year on Thursday, while New York cocoa slumped to an eight-month trough as the market continues to struggle with excess supplies.

Raw sugar hit a one-week low, while arabica extended a recovery.

COCOA

September London cocoa?? settled down 9 pounds, or 0.6pc, to 1,584 pounds per tonne, having hit its weakest since last July at 1,572.

September New York cocoa?? fell $1 to $2,295 a tonne, having earlier hit an eight-month low of $2,268.

NY cocoa may test support at $2,271

Cocoa port arrivals in top producers Ivory Coast and Ghana are trending ever higher this season, data shows.

The European Cocoa Association will release data for second-quarter cocoa grinds, a measure of demand, next Tuesday while data for North America is expected on Thursday.

A dealer said he expects to see a 10pc year-on-year increase in Q2 grinds, albeit from a low base.

SUGAR

October raw sugar settled down 0.3 cent, or 1.7pc, at 17.45 cents per lb, extending its retreat from a four-month peak of 18.49 cents set last week.

There are early indications that damage caused by recent frosts in top producer Brazil is not too severe.

Dealers said physical demand remains weak because of high freight rates but possibly also because consumption is not improving all that sharply as lockdowns are eased.

NY cocoa may fall into $2,313-$2,351 range

Suedzucker confirmed a drop in first-quarter earnings due to the economic impact of COVID-19, though Europe's largest sugar producer still expects profit to climb in its full financial year.

August white sugar fell $5.50, or 1.3pc, at $433.20 a tonne.

COFFEE

September arabica coffee settled up 2.3 cents, or 1.5pc, at $1.5225 per lb, extending a recovery that started on Wednesday after five consecutive falls.

September robusta coffee rose $5, or 0.3pc, at $1,707 a tonne.

Dealers said roasters were probably waiting for coffee to fall to $1.40-1.45, feeling more confident after the recent frosts in Brazil largely spared the coffee growing areas.

But they also reported slow producer selling in top grower Brazil, as many farmers decided to stay away from the market after the recent falls.

Domestic coffee prices in top robusta producer Vietnam edged down on Thursday from a week ago amid pandemic-related movement curbs and high shipping costs.