Cocoa futures sprang to an 8-1/2-month high on Thursday as fears of civil war disrupting supplies in top grower Ivory Coast ratcheted up due to failed mediation talks in the African country. A fire in a Dutch cocoa factory exacerbated supply worries as market players warily eyed the release of North American grind data, an indicator of consumption, at 4 pm EST (2100 GMT).
New York's March cocoa soared by $78 or 2.5 percent to close at $3,178 per tonne, the highest settlement for the spot contract since May 6, 2010 and notching the biggest two-day advance in six weeks. Volume in the US cocoa market came to 27,000 lots, more than double the 30-day average, as players sought to hedge against the possibility supplies from Ivory Coast may not make it out of that country.
Cocoa output from Ivory Coast is running 1.4 percent ahead of last year despite the political turmoil. The March arabica coffee contract on ICE Futures US fell 0.70 cent to conclude at $2.318 per lb. The March raw sugar contract rose 0.13 cent to close at 31.31 cents per lb while London's March white sugar futures fell $3.30 to end at $768.30 per tonne. The sweetener is being supported by uncertainty over Indian sugar exports and damage to the cane crop in major exporter Australia.