Arabica coffee futures slipped on Wednesday, easing off this week's 2-1/2 year high in heavy, choppy trade, as buyers stuck to the sidelines and the momentum of a speculator-driven buying spree on dry weather in top producer Brazil slowed. Cocoa on ICE Futures US slipped to May lows due to expectations of large supplies and worries over softening demand, as raw sugar fell from Tuesday's two-month high.
December arabica coffee futures on ICE reversed earlier gains and closed down 1.9 cents, or 0.9 percent, at $2.1445 per lb as buyers hesitated to buy into a recent run-up. "There's offers on the table, (but) the roasters say they don't need to bid on anything right now," said Jack Scoville, a vice president at Price Futures Group in Chicago.
Robusta coffee futures were lower with supply tightness likely to centre on the arabica market. November robusta futures on Liffe fell $25, or 1.1 percent, to settle at $2,151 a tonne. December cocoa on ICE ended down $13, or 0.4 percent, at $3,038 a tonne, after falling to $3,030, the lowest for the front-month since late May. Traders said weakening consumption and the prospect of large supplies weighed. Top producer Ivory Coast's 2014/15 production will fall from last season's record, but remain at a high level of 1.6 million tonnes, an official said.
Prices touched a 3-1/2-year high of $3,399 last month as speculators piled in due to concerns that the flow of cocoa out of West Africa could be disrupted by the spread of the Ebola virus in the region. March cocoa on Liffe edged lower 10 pounds, or 0.5 percent, to settle at 1,953 pounds a tonne and near the session's low of 1,952 pounds. March raw sugar on ICE March dropped 0.11 cent, or 0.6 percent, to end at 16.92 cents a lb, easing back from the previous day's two-month high of 17.12 cents due to weak demand in subdued volumes. December white sugar futures on Liffe settled down $4.30, nearly 1 percent, at $430.10 per tonne.
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