LONDON: Raw sugar futures on ICE fell sharply on Monday as investors continued to scale back long positions with risk appetite dented by conflict in Ukraine and lockdowns in China while the strength of the dollar also weighed on prices.

Arabica coffee prices slumped to a six-month low while cocoa futures were also weaker.

SUGAR

July raw sugar fell 2% to 18.77 cents per lb by 1307 GMT.

Dealers said the market was expecting Brazil industry group UNICA to release data this week on the cane crush during the second half of April.

Mills showed a strong preference in the first half of April for allocating cane for ethanol rather than sugar production and the market will be watching closely to see the extent to which that trend is continuing.

Speculators reduced their net long position in raw sugar futures on ICE US in the week to May 3, data from the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) showed on Friday.

August white sugar fell 1.7% to $522.40 a tonne.

COFFEE

July arabica coffee fell 2.4% to $2.0545 per lb after dipping to a six-month low of $2.0505.

Dealers said the weakness of the currency of top producer Brazil added to the downward pressure on prices. A weak Brazilian real encourages exporters to sell dollar-priced sugar by as it raises returns in local currency terms.

July robusta coffee fell 2.5% to $2,031 a tonne.

Vietnam exported 739,046 tonnes of coffee in the first four months of this year, up 26.2% from the same period a year earlier, government customs data released on Monday showed.

COCOA

July New York cocoa fell 1.4% to $2,458 a tonne.

Cocoa arrivals at ports in top grower Ivory Coast reached 1.770 millions tonnes between the start of the season on Oct. 1 and April 30, down 3.2% from the same period last year, data from the cocoa regulator showed on Monday.

July London cocoa fell 1.1% to 1,768 pounds a tonne.