Raw sugar futures finished mixed Thursday in activity featuring small speculators as bomb explosions in London dampened the mood after the sugar market there was forced to shut down, traders said. The New York Board of Trade's active October sugar contract rose 0.02 cent to settle at 9.37 cents a lb., trading from 9.27 to 9.39 cents.
March was flat at 9.45 cents. Except for one contract, the rest fell 0.01 or 0.02 cent.
"Everything is at a standstill right now," James Cordier of Liberty Trading Group said, adding market players would likely monitor the situation in London to see if market participants can go back to their trading desks Friday.
Four blasts rocked London early Thursday, killing at least 33 people. Security experts said the blasts had hallmarks of the al Qaeda network responsible for the September 11, 2001, attacks on New York and Washington and the 2004 train bombings in Madrid.
Fundamentally, analysts said, the sugar market was looking at bullish factors like strong consumer buying, which should boost values in the weeks ahead.