German cocoa butter ratios for nearby delivery positions rose this week as supplies tightened, traders said on Friday. "There is little butter for January and February shipment available from origins and this has pushed nearby ratios up again," one trader said. "There are some production problems in Ghana while Asian producers are sitting on big inventories of cocoa powder and cake which they cannot sell.
"So origin suppliers were increasingly offering butter for sale only if cocoa powder and cake were also purchased, cutting general sales offers."
Butter ratios for January/March delivery were at 2.90 to 2.92 on Friday, up from 2.87 before Christmas but down from the 3.50 reached in early December.