Cocoa bean prices in Indonesia's cocoa-growing belt of Sulawesi island rose from last week supported by rising international prices despite the rupiah's extended gains against the US dollar, traders said on Thursday.
Prices of Sulawesi beans (COCOA/ASIA1), collected from farmers and middlemen, rose to 10,900-11,200 rupiah ($1.25-$1.28) a kg on Thursday, from 10,700-10,900 rupiah a kg last week.
The Indonesian rupiah hit a two-year high at about 8,705 per dollar on Wednesday, a day after the central bank cut interest rates by 25 basis points to 12.50 percent.
A stronger rupiah makes the commodity, which is traded in dollars, cheaper in local currency terms.
A rally in cocoa futures at the New York Board of Trade, however, prevented local prices from falling. NYBOT's July cocoa contract delivery settled down $2 at $1,561 a tonne on Thursday, compared with $1,516 a tonne last week.
Daily cocoa bean arrivals from plantations to Makassar were steady at 500 tonnes since last week although the main crop harvest is at full swing in the Central, South and Southeast provinces of Sulawesi.
"Arrivals aren't as much compared to last year which stood at 700 tonnes a day. But the harvest could continue until August," another Makassar trader said.