The Philippines' exports of raw sugar to non-US buyers for the current crop year are likely to increase at least eightfold to a 21-year high of 300,000 tonnes amid high global prices. The projected export volume includes approved raw sugar exports of 55,590 tonnes for March delivery, the Philippines' Sugar Regulatory Administration said.
New York sugar futures, which set the tone for global prices, rallied to their highest in more than three months in late February at around 26 cents a pound on worries about tight supply for nearby delivery. The agency has said it wants to export a fourth of this year's crop estimate and the jump in exports to non-US buyers comes despite doubts about whether the country can meet its output target of 2.2 million tonnes due to unfavourable weather.
"Total production may be lower than 2.2 million tonnes," SRA Administrator Regina Bautista-Martin told Reuters. Cane tonnage has declined by around 20 percent as a result of frequent, heavy rains linked to the La Nina wet weather phenomenon in recent months, and the agency has already lowered its crop estimate for the year that ends in August from 2.4 million tonnes.