US cocoa futures finished firmer in heavy volume on Wednesday, buoyed by May/July spreading, technical buy signals and lingering concerns as top grower Ivory Coast works toward regaining normalcy after months of violence. Arabica coffee rallied on spread dealings in the highest volume in five months, while raw sugar ended weaker. The benchmark May raw sugar contract tumbled 0.79 cent or 3.1 percent to close at 24.79 cents per lb.
July arabica coffee futures jumped 6.80 cents or 2.5 percent to finish at $2.8370 per lb. Key July cocoa futures rose $14 to close at $3,070 a tonne.