Raw sugar futures traded higher on the Intercontinental Exchange (ICE) as the market steadily recovered from a one-year low of 17.20 cents set earlier in the week.

In August 9, 2022 raw sugar is up 0.39 cent, or 2.2 percent to 17.94 cents per pound, while white sugar climbed $22.90 or 4.3 percent to $550.90 a tonne.

Market dealers noted that the recent bout of fund selling has abated significantly, setting sugar to a recovery route after stumbling to a one-year low. This comes after data from the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) showed that funds had increased their short position in August 2022.

Meanwhile, top producer India is expected to allow the exportation of an additional 1.2 million tonnes of the sweet commodity to boost supply in the global market. This, according to dealers, could see prices of raw sugar slip, while supporting white sugar futures.

Coffee Prices Fall

On the other hand, coffee prices fell sharply as concerns that a global economic downturn could curb consumption of coffee remained a bearish influence while a stronger dollar also weighed on prices. As a result, August prices of coffee has slipped 9.85 cents or 4.5 percent to $2.0945 per pound, erasing much of the gains recorded in the previous two sessions.

Market data showed that coffee’s bearish stance was aggravated by reports of an increasing pace of harvest in Brazil, the world’s largest producer. The market however remained underpinned by falling stocks as ICE-certified stocks fell to 660,564 bags, the lowest since July 1999 and down sharply from 2.17 million bags a year ago.

Cocoa also landed in bearish territory as August London cocoa fell 8 pounds or 0.4 percent to £1,772 per tonne, consolidating just above a three-week low of 1,740 pounds set the previous day.

Grain prices, moreover, began to fall as Turkey, the UN, Russia, and Ukraine signed a deal in Istanbul to resume Ukraine’s Black Sea grain exports.

Corn and soybeans extended their fall in the previous session to hit a 8-month and 7-month lows respectively as forecasts of favourable weather eased global supply worries.

The disruption of supplies of cereals, oilseeds and other commodities that are shipped along the Black Sea region has significantly increased food insecurity especially in countries in Africa and the Middle East that are highly dependent on imports from Ukraine.

In the intervening time, if the exports from the wartorn zone proves reasonably successful, it will go a long way to alleviating shortages of grains across Europe, the Middle East, Africa and Asia.

As the global prices of these important commodities start dropping on the market, Ghanaian consumers will somehow be relieved, knowing that prices on the local market is expected to drop in the coming weeks.