Raw sugar prices rallied on a late flurry of trade and speculative buying again to finish Wednesday at their best level in nearly five years, and bullish fundamentals could further boost values, analysts said.
A combination of strong demand for ethanol which is inducing growers in Brazil to use more cane to produce the biofuel, tight supplies, lower output in places like Thailand, and the strong interest of the funds in the sweetener is seen underpinning the rally.
The New York Board of Trade's spot October raw sugar contract went up 0.21 cent or 1.9 percent to close at 11.13 cents a lb, ranging from 10.82 to a new lifetime high of 11.20 cents. It was the highest close on a spot basis since the then spot contract ended at 11.14 cents on October 17, 2000.