Raw sugar prices fell to their lowest level in five years on Wednesday, driven by forecasts of a global surplus for the 2025/26 season. Futures contracts ended down 0.8% at 14.11 cents per pound, after hitting a low of 14.05 cents. The expected increase in Indian production, supported by a favorable monsoon and reduced use of cane for ethanol, is fueling expectations of a surplus. According to Czarnikow, India will produce 32.8 million tons of sugar in 2025/26, up from 26.1 million the previous year, bringing the expected global surplus to 8.7 million tons.
White sugar also fell, dropping 0.2% to $412.70 per ton. Meanwhile, on the cocoa market, prices fell after their sharp rise in 2024, affected by a slowdown in demand. The Barry Callebaut group expects a decline in the sales of cocoa products, under pressure from persistently high prices. Markets remain attentive to weather conditions in West Africa, where rains in southern Ghana and western Côte d'Ivoire are likely to delay harvests, while drier areas are favoring those in Nigeria and Cameroon.
In New York, cocoa fell 3.1% to $6,396 per ton, and 3.2% in London to £4,696. Coffee showed more stability: Robusta remained unchanged at $4,686 per ton, while Arabica rose 2.1% to $4.136 per pound.
