LONDON: Arabica coffee futures on ICE hit eight month lows on Thursday on escalating worries over the impact of the economic downturn on demand, while raw sugar prices tumbled.

COFFEE

September arabica coffee was down 2 cents, or 2pc, to 96.65 cents per lb?? at 1256 GMT, having hit its lowest since mid-October at 96.40.

Signs are emerging that demand for pricey arabica beans is faltering just as top producer Brazil looks set for another record crop, dealers said.

Starbucks expects current-quarter operating income to plunge by up to $2.2 billion and sales to decline for the rest of the year, even as nearly all its cafes have reopened from coronavirus lockdowns.

The US Federal Reserve expects the world's biggest economy will shrink 6.5pc this year.

September robusta coffee fell $23, or 1.8pc, to $1,230 a tonne, having hit its highest since late March on Tuesday.

Top robusta producer Vietnam exported 130,284 tonnes of coffee in May, down 21.4pc from April.

For the first five months of 2020, exports were up 5.0pc from a year earlier.

Vietnam's local coffee prices were unchanged from last week as farmers had almost sold out their stocks.

SUGAR

July raw sugar fell 0.3 cents, or 2.4pc, to 11.95 cents per lb, heading away from Monday's near three-month high.

Oil prices sank, prompting cane mills in Brazil to ramp up sugar output at the expense of cane-based ethanol fuel.

Annual monsoon rains have covered more than a third of India and could spread further.

August white sugar fell $7.20, or 1.8pc, to $387.70 a tonne, having hit a three-month high on Wednesday.

COCOA

September London cocoa fell 12 pounds, or 0.7pc, to 1,746 pounds per tonne, having hit a two-month low earlier.

September New York cocoa fell $50, or 2.1pc, to $2,344 a tonne.