NEW YORK/LONDON: Raw sugar and arabica coffee futures on ICE fell on Tuesday, with both hitting more than five-week lows, pressured by weakness in the Brazilian currency and a broader downturn in commodity markets.
The 19-market Thomson Reuters Core Commodity Index touched its weakest level since December as oil plummeted six percent.
SUGAR
* March raw sugar settled down 0.33 cent, or 2.6 percent, at 12.61 cents per lb after dipping to a more than five-week low of 12.57 cents.
* Prices were pressured by a slide in Brazil's currency, dealers said. The real was at its weakest against the US dollar in over a month, encouraging producer selling.
* A sharp downturn in oil and gasoline prices also weighed on sugar, prompting concerns that ethanol demand could be dented, dealers said.
* Brent crude traded at its lowest since March on worries about weakening global demand, oversupply, and sell offs across other asset classes, including equities. US gasoline futures plunged to their lowest in over a year.
* Speculative buying appetite was lackluster, dealers noted.
* "Now that funds and specs have liquidated short positions and are long, there is little aggressive buying for the producers to sell into," Nick Penney, senior trader at Sucden Financial, said in a note.
* December white sugar settled down $4.40 or 1.3 percent, to $341.50 a tonne.
COFFEE
* March arabica coffee settled down 1.25 cent, or 1.10 percent, at $1.1275 per lb after falling to $1.1120, its lowest since Oct. 5.
* Prices were lower on the weak Brazilian currency, dealers said.
* The heavy speculative buying that has been supporting prices petered out, with bearish fundamentals now moving into focus, dealers said.
* "The USDA increased its estimate for the size of the Brazil crop...the real is weak, the weather in Brazil is perfect so the 19/20 crop is off to a really good start," one US trader said.
* "It seems like the supply and demand balance is finally weighing on prices," said one European dealer. "There's a lot of coffee coming."
* Total open interest in arabica fell by 769 lots to 247,618 lots on Monday, its lowest since mid-May, ICE data show.
* January robusta coffee settled up $2, or 0.1 percent, at $1,656 per tonne.
COCOA
* March New York cocoa settled up $7, or 0.3 percent, at $2,255 per tonne.
* March London cocoa settled down 7 pounds, or 0.4 percent, at 1,638 pounds per tonne, its fifth straight negative finish, pressured by a stronger British pound.
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