Brazil's 2010/11 (May/April) cocoa arrivals were down 6.5 percent by July 18, at 1.04 million 60-kg bags compared with 1.11 million bags a year ago, the Bahia Commercial Association said on Wednesday. In the last week, arrivals from the main cocoa-growing state Bahia totalled 58,978 bags down from the 61,733 bags delivered in the same week a year ago in line with slower deliveries in the last few weeks.
Cocoa analyst Thomas Hartmann showed optimism that a turn-around was in sight, even weeks into the mid-crop harvest that began in May, noting that "arrivals from Bahia have started to improve again." On the other hand, deliveries from other states reached 21,471 bags, half the amount delivered that week a year ago, when arrivals reached 43,897 bags.
Farm gate prices in Bahia climbed during the week, mirroring gains on the futures market which has gained support. Cocoa was changing hands at up to 92 reais ($51.59) per arroba (15 kg) by early this week, up from 86-87 reais previously. Hartmann added Brazilian exports of cocoa beans, products and chocolates in June reached 6,122 tonnes, generating $23.5 million.
Light showers are expected to continue falling over Bahia's entire cocoa region, but are due to be interspersed with periods of sunshine with temperatures between 20 and 27 Celsius. Brazil ranks sixth among the world's cocoa growers but was No 2 only a few decades ago until fungal witch's broom disease devastated its plantations, slashing output by more than half.