Raw sugar prices hit seven-week high, cocoa rebounds

Raw sugar futures on ICE climbed to a seven-week high on Monday, boosted by growing belief that the market has bottomed out after a prolonged downtrend, while New York cocoa prices rose for the first time in five sessions.
October raw sugar settled up 0.19 cent, or 1.7 percent, at 11.2 cents per lb, after tapping a seven-week high at 11.27 cents.
The spot contract extended its rebound above last month's 10-year low of 9.91 cents, which marked a 35 percent drop from end-2017 and was expected to erode production.
Total open interest has fallen daily during the rebound, down nearly 90,000 contracts to 971,968 contracts on Friday, ICE data show.
During this rebound, speculators raised a record net short position in raw sugar contracts in the week to Sept. 4, US data showed late Friday.
"After two years of low prices, production has started to trend downwards ... the best guess is that by 2019/20 we will be back in global deficit," broker Marex Spectron said.
Beet crops are expected to be lower this season in the European Union and Russia.
Associated British Foods, parent of British Sugar, said in a trading update on Monday that UK sugar production was expected to be much lower.
Sugar production in the EU and Russia could also be lower in 2019 "as farmers plant other crops and/or soils are just too dry for beets," Commonwealth Bank of Australia analyst Tobin Gorey said in a note.
December white sugar settled up $2.30, or 0.7 percent, at $334.20 per tonne.
The white October discount to December traded wildly and widened to as much as $7.20, from $2.90 the prior session ahead of the October expiry on Friday.
December New York cocoa settled up $41, or 1.8 percent, at $2,300 per tonne.
"To gain conviction on the upside, the market needs to close back above $2,327 in heavier volumes," Sucden Financial technical analyst Geordie Wilkes said in a market note.
December London cocoa settled up 8 pounds, or 0.5 percent, at 1,651 pounds per tonne.
December arabica coffee settled down 1.2 cent, or 1.2 percent, at $1.0125 per lb. It remained within sight of last week's 12-year low of 98.65 cents.
November robusta coffee settled down $14, or 0.9 percent, at $1,477 per tonne.
Vietnam, the world's top robusta producer, exported 153,300 tonnes, or 2.55 million 60kg bags, of coffee in August, customs data showed.