Raw sugar prices settled higher Thursday on buying by small speculators as the market appeared to be content to stay in a wide band while waiting for leads in the weeks ahead, brokers said.
The New York Board of Trade's October raw sugar contract added 0.15 cent to close at 16.42 cents per lb, moving from 16.33 to 16.51 cents. It was an inside day since the range was within Wednesday's 16.25 to 16.72 cents band.
March rose 0.13 to 16.81 cents. The rest increased from 0.10 to 0.17 cent. "We're in kind of a trading range," said James Cordier of Liberty Trading Group, adding the key October contract seems stuck between 16 and 17.50 cents.
Fundamentally, the market took note of news from German analyst F.O. Licht who forecast a rise in world sugar output for 2005/06 (October/September) of 149.02 million tonnes, from 142.07 million in 2004/05.
Demand for 2005/06 was pegged at 145.7 million tonnes, from the previous 144.1 million. Most analysts feel the outlook for 2006/07 is in rough balance and the main factor, as always, will be the level of global demand. Sugar contracts popped higher from the opening bell, buoyed by speculators trying to nudge the market to ever higher ground.
But the appetite for sugar contracts faded and some of the same speculators lightened their positions going into the close of business, traders said. Technicians pegged support for the October contract at 16 cents, with resistance at 16.78 and 17 cents.
Volume before the end amounted to 26,295 lots, against the previous 47,961 contracts. Call volume touched 11,427 lots and puts hit 3,603 lots. Open interest in the No 11 raw sugar market rose 1,996 lots to 457,701 lots as of July 12. There were no deals done in the ethanol market.
US domestic sugar prices ended mixed. September rose 0.05 to 22.61 cents per lb and November eased 0.01 to 22.53 cents. The rest ranged from up 0.07 cent to 0.03 cent easier. Volume before the end hit 475 lots, from the prior tally of 693 lots.