Sugar, cocoa and coffee futures rose on Thursday, buoyed by broad-based gains in energy and commodity markets on signs that the economic outlook might be improving, dealers said. "The energy complex is stronger which is supportive and maybe we are getting a bit of a pre-holiday bounce," said Rabobank trader Nick Hungate.
The Reuters-Jefferies CRB index a global commodities benchmark, stood 1.5 percent higher at 1650 GMT on Thursday with crude oil leading the advance. Sugar prices extended gains in late trade with news keenly awaited on whether India, the worlds largest consumer, will allow duty-free imports of whites. May whites in London settled $8.60 higher at $403.00 a tonne while May raws on ICE stood 0.28 cent higher at 12.66 cents a lb at 1650 GMT.
Sugar prices have been falling steadily during the last three weeks with May raws trading as high as 13.76 cents in mid-March. Cocoa prices rose despite news of a sharp decline in first quarter grind in Germany. Germanys first-quarter 2009 cocoa grind fell 21.3 percent on the year to 80,401 tonnes, the association of confectionery producers BDSI said on Thursday, reflecting a slump in demand from chocolate makers due to the economic crisis.
Dealers said the market was waiting for wider European cocoa grind data to be issued, possibly next week. Europes cocoa grind edged up 0.1 percent in the fourth quarter of last year but is expected to have fallen about five percent in the first quarter of 2009 as the global economic downturn helped to curtail consumption. May futures in London ended 17 pounds higher at 1,842 pounds a tonne while July cocoa on ICE settled $3 firmer at $2,566 a tonne.
Dealers said volume was boosted by heavier-than-normal spread trading in London with May/July and December/March particularly active. They also noted trading in July 2010 options. Coffee futures were swept higher by gains in other markets in thin pre-holiday trading. ICE May arabicas were up 0.75 cent to $1.1895 per lb while London July robustas ended $5 higher at $1,558 per tonne.
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