Spot raw sugar futures on ICE settled lower on worries about dry weather in top-grower Brazil on Thursday as commercial longs rolled their positions into the March contract. October raw sugar settled down 0.06 cent, or 0.4 percent, at 14.27 cents per lb.
"Some commercial longs are rolling their positions into the March contract" a US trader said adding, "There's probably some March and May price fixing going on, too." The premium for white over raw sugar - a measure of the profitability of refining - has recovered only slightly after falling to its weakest in 2-1/2 years this week in the run-up to an expected large harvest in the EU.
Weather in India, the world's second-biggest sugar producer, is positive for production, said Peter Mooses, senior market strategist with RJO Futures in Chicago. "Continued rains in central areas will further ease dryness in support of cane growth," Gaithersburg, Maryland-based MDA Information Systems wrote in a note Thursday, describing weather in India and Pakistan.
December white sugar settled up $1.60, or 0.4 percent, at $373.90 per tonne. Market participants were tidying up positions ahead of expiry for the October contract, which is expected to be modest after a sharp drop in open interest over the last few session, dealers noted.
December arabica coffee settled down 0.2 cent, or 0.15 percent, at $1.3765 per lb, after hitting $1.3925, the highest for the second position since August 15. Speculator short-covering and concerns about dry weather in Brazil supported prices, Mooses said. The weather forecast in Brazil continues to have below normal rainfall across the majority of the coffee belt for the next 6-10 days, MDA Information Systems wrote in the note.
November robusta coffee settled down $10, or 0.5 percent, at $1,993 per tonne. December London cocoa settled down 25 pounds, or 1.7 percent, at 1,484 pounds per tonne. Price-fixing happened in the London contract on its expiry day Thursday, the US trader said.
Deep discounts failed to spur interest for spot London cocoa. December New York cocoa settled down $17, or 0.9 percent, at $1,973 per tonne, after touching a 5-week high of $2,012. Concerns loomed about the quality of the West African cocoa crop, after sustaining rain earlier during the summer, said Mooses. The British sterling rallied to a 1-year high Thursday. A stronger sterling encourages buying of dollar-traded cocoa over its British counterpart.