Sugar edges higher undercut by rising energy prices

BY ONOME AMUGE

Raw sugar futures recovered from a seven-week low reached earlier in the week to record gains on the Intercontinental Exchange (ICE) buoyed by rising energy prices, which prompted cane mills to produce more ethanol, a cane-based biofuel, at the expense of sugar in top producer Brazil

July raw sugar rose 0.5 percent to 18.87 cents per lb, while August white sugar was up 0.4 percent to $524.40 a tonne.

Market dealers cited good buying from end users at the current price levels, but added that the sweet commodity was unlikely to make significant gains with the dollar strengthening and little fresh news on the fundamentals front.

Also, capping sugar’s upside is the report that Indian mills have signed contracts to export 8.2 million to 8.3 million tonnes of sugar in the current year without government subsidies.

In contrast, July arabica coffee slid 1.9 percent to $2.1325 per lb, having earlier fallen to its lowest since late March at $2.1260.

July robusta coffee was down 0.8 percent to $2,120, after rising to a five-week peak of $2,159 the previous day.

The International Coffee Organisation said in its latest monthly report that global coffee exports in March were 3.99 percent higher compared to a year ago at 13.16 million bags, reflecting higher output.

In addition, Arabica stocks held in ICE certified warehouses have also been edging up over the past two months after falling to 20-year lows in February.

Meanwhile, cocoa futures fell into bearish territory as reports showed that cumulative cocoa arrivals at top producer Ivory Coast rose above previous levels.

July New York cocoa was down one percent to $2,486 a tonne, while July London cocoa also shed one percent to £1,781 per tonne.