PARIS: Arabica coffee futures on ICE rose on Wednesday, trading near a six-week high, amid low stocks in Japan and Europe. Cocoa dropped, while sugar edged lower.
COFFEE
Arabica coffee was up 3.6 cents, or 1.1 percent, at USD3.15 per lb, after touching the highest price since September 9 at USD3.1820 in the previous session.
Green coffee stocks in Japan and Europe, two of the largest markets for the beverage, decreased in August compared to last year, according to figures from industry groups.
Coffee stocks in main consuming countries have been falling in recent years due to high prices and limited production in growing regions that were impacted by adverse climate conditions, according to figures compiled by the Coffee Trading Academy.
Robusta coffee was down USD14, or 0.4 percent, at USD3,411 a metric ton.
SUGAR
Raw sugar was down 0.5 percent at 20.42 cents per lb after hitting a 19-month peak of 21.29 last week. With funds holding a record long position, the market is prone to a correction, traders said.
The global sugar market supply deficit, or the gap between production and demand, was projected on Tuesday to grow to 6.28 million tons, 3 million tons more than a previous estimate, according to market analyst Green Pool Commodities. White sugar was down 0.6 percent at USD544.00 a ton.
COCOA
London cocoa traded £59, or 1.3 percent, lower at £4,386 per ton after rising in the previous session. Dry weather across most of Ivory Coast’s cocoa belt last week raised concerns about potential damage to pods for next year’s harvest, farmers said. New York cocoa was down 1.2 percent at USD5,730 a ton.