Arabica coffee on ICE Futures US on Tuesday slipped to its lowest price since late June as investors continued to unwind a bullish bet, while cocoa futures retreated and raw sugar edged higher in thin volumes. London softs markets remained closed for UK Boxing Day. Both US and London softs markets were closed on Monday for the Christmas holiday.
The front-month arabica coffee contract on ICE fell 1.85 cent, or 1.36 percent, to $134.30 per lb by 10:10 am EST (1510 GMT) after hitting a six-month low of $1.3415. "Whatever longs are left are liquidating," said Nick Gentile, managing partner of commodity trading advisor NickJen Capital in New York. Weekly US government data on Friday showed investors dialed back a net long position in the commodity in the most recent reporting week.
Benchmark cocoa futures also fell, pressured by expectations of strong supplies from Ivory Coast, the world's top producer. Light rains mixed with hot weather and mild Harmattan winds bode well for next year's crop, farmers said on Tuesday. Front-month March New York cocoa on ICE was down $41.00, or 1.81 percent, at $2,223.00 per tonne. In sugar, the raw contract edged higher in thin trade. "You've got some book-squaring. There's just a lack of interest right now," Gentile said of the range-bound trade that has characterised the raw sugar market in the past six sessions. Benchmark ICE March raw sugar rose 0.11 cent, or 0.61 percent, to 18.26 cents per lb.
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