Cocoa prices slump on signs of improved crop in West Africa

Cocoa fell for a fifth day to a one- year low in London on signs of a better crop in West Africa, the world’s biggest producing region. White sugar declined after four days of gains.

Bean deliveries by Ivory Coast farmers to the ports of Abidjan and San Pedro about doubled from a year earlier to 8,266 metric tons in the week ended Aug. 29, according to an industry official with access to the figures. The country’s exports climbed 77 per cent in July, data supplied by the ports shows.

“Most people are expecting a better crop than last year,” said Gary Mead, an analyst at VM Group in London. “There’s not much in fundamental terms to keep prices high. From late September onward, we should see a lot of cocoa flow out of Ivory Coast, Ghana and West Africa. That’s more than half the world’s supply.

Cocoa for December delivery fell as much as 32 pounds, or 1.7 per cent, to 1,824 pounds ($2,808) a ton on NYSE Liffe and traded at 1,851 pounds at 12:29 p.m. London time. December- delivery cocoa declined 0.1 per cent to $2,644 a ton on ICE Futures US in New York, rebounding from a slide as low as $2,603.

Ivory Coast harvests its main crop from Oct. 1 to March 31, while a smaller mid-crop is gathered from April to September. The country is the biggest cocoa producer, and Ghana ranks second.

29 Days

White, or refined, sugar for December delivery fell 1.4 per cent to $577.80 a ton in London, the first drop since Sept. 6. Raw sugar for March delivery was little changed at 21.70 cents a pound in New York.

Sugar climbed as high as $588 a ton in London last week as delays at ports in Brazil, the largest producer, disrupted exports of the sweetener. Ships will wait a record 29 days before loading this month at the Santos port in Sao Paulo state, said Nicolle Alves de Castro, a commercial associate at research firm Santos Associados Consultoria Ltda.

“For the time being, volatility is going to increase,” said Naim Beydoun, a broker and analyst at Rolle, Switzerland- based Swiss Sugar Brokers. “We are seeing more funds buying into the market. Overall, the supply is still behind.”

Robusta coffee for November delivery advanced 0.6 percent to $1,592 a ton on NYSE Liffe. Arabica coffee for December delivery rose 0.6 per cent to $1.91 a pound in New York.