New York sugar finishes mostly easier

Raw sugar futures ended largely lower on Monday on sales by small speculators, and the market could stay in a band given the dearth of news to inspire its next move, brokers said. The New York Board of Trade's October sugar contract was the only winner by rising 0.03 cent to close at 10.02 cents per lb., dealing from 9.99 to 10.12 cents.
March shed 0.01 to 10.28 cents. The rest lost 0.01 to 0.03 cent. The more actively traded IntercontinentalExchange NYBOT electronic market for sugar showed the key October contract rise 0.04 cent to 10.03 cents at 1:18 pm EDT (1718 GMT). "There's a lack of news at this time and sugar is susceptible to movements in other markets like crude. It seems to have found an equilibrium around 10 cents (basis October)," a veteran floor dealer for a financial house said.
Fundamentally, the trade is keeping an eye on recent steep increases in crude prices because they could lure producers in Brazil to churn out more of the biofuels ethanol.
But supplies are plentiful and the glut could be a constant in the market into the 2008/09 season, the analysts said. Technically, dealers said the signals are pointing to lower ground and a seasonal tendency around this time could herald a break in the market.
If that happens, the fall may drag the market down to just below 9.00 cents, basis the spot month. Futures opened higher, eased back to unchanged, then the spot October contract was nudged up by buying from small speculators, dealers said.
Technicians put resistance in the October contract at 10.50/53 cents, with support at 9.80 cents. Volume traded before noon in the open-outcry pit was 2,120 lots, from the previous 6,758 lots. Call volume was 12,762 lots and puts stood at 2,441 lots.
Screen trade on Friday was 57,903 lots and total volume was 64,661 lots. Open interest in the No 11 world raw sugar market dropped 7,179 to 689,518 lots as of July 27. No deals were done in the ethanol market. The US domestic electronic sugar market saw the November contract down 0.01 to 21.42 cents at 1:19 pm. Screen volume in the No 14 domestic sugar market on Friday was 75 lots and 282 lots were traded in the pit.