Arabica Coffee Turns Lower, Sugar Prices Climb

By Dave Simpson
Arabica Coffee Turns Lower, Sugar Prices Climb

Arabica coffee futures on ICE turned lower on Wednesday 14 December as a technically-driven rally ran out of steam while sugar prices were higher.

Coffee

* March arabica coffee KCc2 fell 0.6% to $1.6685 per lb by 1522 GMT on Wednesday 14 December.

* Dealers said the market was back on the defensive after rallying earlier this week, weighed partly by the continued rise in exchange stocks.

* ICE certified coffee stocks stood at 717,646 bags on 13 December the highest level since 20 July and well above a 23-year low of 382,695 bags set on 3 November. There were 346,116 bags pending grading.

* March robusta coffee LRCc2 rose 0.05% to $1,873 a tonne.

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* Dealers noted the harvest in top robusta producer Vietnam was around 70% complete with further rains adding to concerns about the quality of the crop.

Sugar

* March raw sugar SBc1 rose 1.7% to 20.09 cents per lb, boosted partly by higher energy prices.

* Dealers said supplies were expected to be ample next year although there remained some short-term tightness partly driven by delays to the harvest in major exporter Thailand.

* March white sugar LSUc1 rose 1.4% to $547.30 a tonne.

Cocoa

* March London cocoa LCCc1 rose 0.2% to 1,955 pounds a tonne.

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* A total of 82,770 tonnes of cocoa was tendered against the ICE December London cocoa contract LCCZ2, exchange data showed on Wednesday.

* March New York cocoa CCc2 fell 0.6% to $2,525 a tonne.

News by Reuters, edited by Hospitality Ireland. Click subscribe to sign up for the Hospitality Ireland print edition.