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London cocoa futures on ICE hit 46-year highs on Monday, buoyed by investor bets on a third successive deficit next season, while raw sugar turned higher after earlier slipping to its lowest in nearly a month.
COCOA
* December London cocoa LCCc2 rose 2.2% to 2,740 pounds per metric ton by 1331 GMT after peaking at 2,745 pounds for the highest level since 1977.
* London cocoa speculators raised their net long position by 2,103 lots to 81,118 lots as of Aug. 1, data showed.
* Cocoa is being boosted by expectations that recent excess rain in West Africa and the potential for El Nino to trigger dry conditions ahead will result in a third successive deficit next season.
* The deficit fears persist despite signs that demand is starting to slip. Dealers noted that September cocoa is trading at a widening discount to December LCC-1=R, indicating improved near-term supplies or reduced demand, or perhaps both.
* December New York cocoa CCc2 rose 2.5% to $3,587 a ton after peaking at $3,599 for the highest level since 2011.
* New York cocoa speculators cut their net long position by 1,167 contracts to 50,853 in the week to Aug. 1, data showed.
SUGAR
* October raw sugar SBc1 rose 1% to 23.92 cents per lb, regaining some ground after hitting its lowest since early July at 23.40 cents. The contract lost 1% last week and 4.4% the previous week.
* Dealers said the market looks weak and could fall further. They noted that while end users have more to buy, they appear to be in no hurry as the Brazilian harvest continues apace and rains continue to fall across Asia.
* Egypt is believed to have purchased about 50,000 metric tons of raw sugar in an international tender that closed on Aug. 5, traders said.
* October white sugar LSUc1 rose 0.5% to $689.70 per metric ton.
COFFEE
* September arabica coffee KCc1 rose 0.7% to $1.6250 per lb. It gained 2.2% last week.
* Arabica coffee from Brazil, usually rated as lower grade, has arrived in big volumes on the ICE exchange in a fresh challenge to hand-picked premium beans from less efficient, smaller farms elsewhere in Latin America and Africa.
* December robusta coffee LRCc2 rose 1.1% to $2,515 a ton.