LONDON: The International Sugar Organization (ISO) on Friday trimmed its forecast for the size of a global sugar surplus in the 2022/23 season driven mainly by lower-than-expected production.

The inter-governmental body’s quarterly report projected a global surplus of 4.2 million tonnes in 2022/23 (October/September), down from a previous forecast of 6.2 million issued in the previous update in November 2022.

A Reuters poll of traders and analysts issued earlier this month had a median forecast for the 2022/23 season of a surplus of 3.25 million tonnes. “Our fundamental view has changed from neutral-to-bearish to neutral for the next three months,” the ISO said.

The ISO projected global production in 2022/23 would rise to a still record 180.4 million tonnes, a downward revision from its previous projection of 182.1 million. Production in India was cut to 34.3 million tonnes from a previous forecast 35.5 million.