LONDON: Raw sugar futures on ICE fell to a one-year low on Wednesday, weighed partly by stronger-than-expected production in the centre-south region of Brazil during the first half of July.

SUGAR

October raw sugar fell 0.5% to 17.39 cents per lb by 1420 GMT after dipping to a one-year low of 17.32 cents.

Sugar production in Brazil’s centre-south totalled 2.97 million tonnes in the first half of July, sugar and ethanol industry group Unica said on Wednesday.

Production had been expected to be around 2.84 million, according to a survey from S&P Global Commodity Insights.

The volume of cane crushed was also significantly higher than expected at 46.34 million tonnes.

October white sugar rose 0.2% to $511 a tonne.

COFFEE

September arabica coffee rose 2.5% to $2.1845 per lb.

Dealers said the market continued to derive support from falling exchange stocks. ICE certified stocks, as of July 26, stood at only 703,310 bags, sharply down from 2.18 million bags a year ago.

They also noted if the weather in top producer Brazil remains dry in coming weeks it could have an adverse impact on next year’s crop.

September robusta coffee rose 1.1% to $1,996 a tonne.

Food and beverage giant Nestle said it has started operations at its new coffee processing plant in Mexico, its largest instant coffee site in the world, where it invested $340 million to process 670,000 bags per year.

COCOA

September New York cocoa fell 1.2% to $2,372 a tonne, slipping back after earlier climbing to a one-month peak of $2,410.

September London cocoa fell 0.7% to 1,752 pounds a tonne.