US arabica coffee futures closed a shade higher Friday, as origin sellers backed away from the market amid a firming Brazilian currency and speculators provided some support, brokers said. "Technically New York is consolidating. London had a nice performance though, and if it keeps the pace higher on Monday it could help New York," one trader said.
The benchmark May contract slipped to fresh lows dating back to October twice this week. The NYBOT open-outcry May inched 0.10 cent higher to settle at $1.1250 per lb, in dealings from $1.1150 to $1.1275. July coffee finished up 0.05 cent at $1.1535, while the rest settled up 0.05 to 0.45 cent.
On the ICE New York Board of Trade electronic platform at 1:58 pm EST (1858 GMT), May rose 0.05 cent to $1.1245 per lb. July gained 0.10 cent at $1.1540. In London, robusta coffee futures closed higher with the Liffe May contract ending $25 per tonne higher at $1,524, in narrow dealings from $1,503 and $1,530 a tonne.
Brazil is the world's biggest coffee grower and its currency, the real, firmed against the dollar on Friday, which traders attributed to keeping origin sellers away from the market. NYBOT estimated coffee futures volume at 8,200 lots compared to the 18,100 tallied Thursday. Open interest was up 2,067 lots to 134,188 as of March 8. Trade volume was heavy in the options pit, with calls volume estimated at 7,266 and puts at 7,289 lots.
The rangebound session was in part due to the expiration of April options on Friday, which kept some participants on the sidelines, traders said. Open-outcry trading hours for coffee futures and options contracts will be extended to 8:30 am Eastern time (1230 GMT) to 12:30 pm, from 9:15 am to 12:30 pm, effective March 16, NYBOT announced on Friday.
On the weather front, Brazil was forecast to see mostly dry conditions with the chance of light showers through Wednesday, amid near to above-normal temperatures, DTN Meteorlogix said. In related news, Europe's physical coffee market saw trade in Brazilian and Brazilian replacement beans this week, traders said on Friday. "Roasters were active buyers of Brazilian beans for nearby positions if they could find soft differentials," one trader said.
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