ICE raw sugar futures slipped on Monday as the market continued to consolidate recent gains in holiday-thinned trade and as oil prices weakened.
SUGAR March raw sugar slipped 0.04 cents, or 0.3%, to 13.50 cents per lb by 1304 GMT, having clocked nine straight weeks of gains last week.
Oil prices fell, driving down energy prices more broadly and weighing on sugar by tempting cane mills to produce less ethanol and more of the sweetener. ICE raw sugar speculators trimmed their net short position by 21,293 contracts to 4,986 in the week to Dec 17, CFTC data showed.
They are expected to slowly start building a net long position given tightening supplies and an upbeat macro economic backdrop, but are taking a measured approach as producer selling remains firm at or near recent highs.
Marex Spectron said sugar is currently in a window period where it can explore the outer limits of its new range with the harvest in top producer Brazil virtually done for 2019/20 and output disappointing in other key regions.
Brazil's centre-south produced 33,000 tonnes of sugar in the first half of December, down 92.4% from a year earlier, trade group Unica said.
Indonesia may import 3.2 million tonnes of raw sugar for industry in 2020, a government official said.
March white sugar fell $0.9, or 0.3%, to $357.60 a tonne, having hit its highest since February on Friday.
COFFEE
March arabica coffee fell 3.1 cents, or 2.4%, to $1.2760 per lb, having settled up 2.8% on Friday.
ICE arabica speculators raised their net long position in the week to Dec 17 by 5,557 contracts to 20,049.
March arabica rose to a peak of $1.3840 last Tuesday, the highest in more than two years, but has since slid below $1.30 cents in volatile, holiday-thinned trade.
Prices have gained some 40% since mid-October, supported by fund buying amid tightening supplies, with exchange arabica stocks falling and a global deficit widely forecast for the 2019/20 season.
March robusta coffee was down $6, or 0.4%, at $1,368 a tonne.
COCOA
March New York cocoa was down $24, or 1%, at $2,393 a tonne, having hit its lowest since mid-September at $2,392.
Speculators in ICE New York cocoa cut their net long position in the week to Dec 17 by 1,157 contracts to 35,315.
March London cocoa was flat at 1,749 pounds a tonne, after hitting 1,743 earlier, its lowest since mid-September.
Speculators in ICE London cocoa cut their net long position in the week to Dec 17 by 19,233 contracts to 45,576.