Cocoa arrivals at ports in Ivory Coast reached around 1,065,000 tonnes between October 1, 2005 and May 7, 2006, exporters contacted by Reuters estimated on Monday.
That compared with around 1,046,000 tonnes delivered to the ports during the same period of the previous season, industry data showed. The figures differ from a weekly aggregated industry estimate based on purchases by all exporting companies in Ivory Coast.
"Arrivals last week came to around 25,000 tonnes. It's good but almost all the cocoa is being bought by processors because they're paying more than the other exporters for it," said a salesman for one international exporter based in Abidjan.
Another exporter said processing companies were offering around 30 CFA francs more per kg for beans than regular shippers.