Arabica hits four-year highs amid tightening supplies

LONDON: Arabica prices hit fresh four-year highs on Thursday boosted by tightening supplies in top producer Brazil and beyond, while raw sugar rose as commodities and equities by and large recovered from the previous day's sell-off.

COFFEE

July arabica coffee rose 1.2% to $1.5265 per lb by 1307 GMT, having hit a four-year peak of $1.5365.

Coffee exports from Guatemala, the world's sixth largest arabica exporter, are set to fall by up to 3% this season due to a lack of workers and erratic rains.

Also boosting arabica, anti-government protests have disrupted coffee exports in Colombia, the world's second largest arabica exporter.

An expected drop in arabica production in top producer Brazil this year remains a background supportive factor, as does the recent recovery in the Brazilian real.

July robusta coffee edged up 0.2% to $1,505 a tonne.

Robusta export premiums in Vietnam, the world's top robusta producer, tightened this week amid a dearth of supply.

SUGAR

July raw sugar rose 0.7% to 17.07 cents per lb.

Traders at an ISO Datagro sugar conference said the market is currently well supplied with no tightness expected in the short term, and possible sugar sales from speculators on the cards if the positive macroeconomic environment reverses.

They agreed raw sugar has a floor given an ethanol price parity of around 16.50 cents, and a ceiling at around 19 cents - a level that could spur unsubsidised Indian exports.

Suedzucker said it expects a stronger EU sugar market going forward as countries emerge from coronavirus lockdowns.

August white sugar rose 0.6% to $456.20 a tonne.

COCOA

July London cocoa fell 0.5% to 1,643 pounds per tonne.

July New York cocoa slipped 0.7% to $2,452 a tonne.

Top producer Ivory Coast processed 42,000 tonnes of beans in April, down 8.7% from last season.

Its grindings could drop by 40% in May due to power shortages.

Forecasters Climate42 said much of the upcoming Ivory Coast main crop has set relatively late and might wilt in August if there aren't enough rains.