London robusta coffee futures rose 5 percent on trade buying on Monday to the front-month's highest in more than 7-1/2 years, dealers said. "It looks like there are some people who haven't fixed their September positions...It looks like it could be trade," one dealer said.
The nearby September contract rose $91, or 5 percent, to $1,900 a tonne after trading between $1,901 and $1,827 by 1045 GMT. Total volume was 4,288 lots. The demand for nearby coffee showed supply tightness and that market fundamentals remained strong.
The top of the range was the highest on a first-month continuation basis since December 1998and a contract high for September. The benchmark November contract rose $38, or 2.5 percent, to $1,575 after trading between $1,578 and $1,540.
September's premium against November rose to as much as $332, its highest level in recent years, the dealers added.
Robusta prices, which are 25 percent higher than at the start of the year, soared in recent weeks on news of flood damage to stocks in the Italian port of Trieste, just as supplies from Vietnam started to run out.
Euronext.liffe said on Friday it had amended stock figures upwards by 504 to 16,161 lots, partially offsetting the 3,098 lots suspended due to the flooding in Trieste.
Dealers said the new figures had minimal impact on the market. Traders said news of cold weather in Brazilian coffee growing areas added to Monday's price rise but the gains were limited because it was unclear how far temperatures would fall in crop areas, they added.
"We need to know how bad it's going to be," another dealer said. A strong cold front is expected to bring frost near some coffee-producing regions in south-east Brazil, the National Meteorological Institute (INMET) said in a weather alert. But private meteorologist Somar said farms in northern Parana and south-western Sao Paulo would be unharmed.
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