London cocoa futures inched higher on Tuesday to maintain a seven-month high as continued fund buying delayed an expected correction.
Worries about political upheaval and weather conditions in top grower Ivory Coast are also boosting values for beans.
The market "is massively overbought so at the slightest hint of weakness" participants rush to buy, one dealer said.
"Weather, politics and technicals are all at play," he added.
The Liffe December contract gained 21 pounds to 1,011 pounds a tonne at the top of the day's 984-1,012 trading range.
Volume was 7,871 lots out of a total of 13,965.