US cocoa futures rose on Friday as a weaker dollar helped the market recover part of the previous day's losses amid lethargic trade. The New York Board of Trade's active July cocoa contract rose $13, or 0.9 percent, to close at $1,521 a tonne, after trading between $1,514 and $1,530. It fell $19 Thursday.
September rose $12 to end at $1,542 a tonne, after trades of $1,536-$1,550. It fell $18 the previous session. The back months were up $1.70 to $14.
Cocoa futures trading volume on the NYBOT reached an estimated 5,759 lots, down from Thursday's official tally of 10,722 lots.
"It was all dollar play today," said a trader in New York. "Everytime the cocoa market tries to come down, the dollar gets weak, and cocoa sort of gets beat up on the arbitrage."
The dollar extended its losses as the Group of Seven's call last week for more currency flexibility in China gave traders the excuse to sell the greenback.