Forexpros – Sugar futures were down for a second day on Wednesday, hovering close to the previous session’s one-month low after India forecast the highest sugar crop in four years, easing concerns over tightening global supplies.
On the ICE Futures U.S. Exchange, sugar futures for October delivery traded at USD0.2738 a pound during European morning trade, dropping 0.83%.
It earlier fell as much as 0.94% to trade at a daily low of USD0.2734 a pound, just above the previous session’s one-month low of USD0.2726.
Sugar production in India was forecast to total 25.83 million metric tons in the 2011-12 marketing season starting October 1, according to a compilation of estimates by sugar cane commissioners of 10 states.
The upbeat estimate compares with a previous projection of 24.2 million tons and is the highest since the 2007-08 marketing season.
Sugar output in India’s largest cane-growing state Uttar Pradesh could total 6.45 million tons, according to Kamran Rizvi, the state’s sugar cane commissioner.
India is the world’s second largest sugar producer.
Meanwhile, optimism over Brazil’s sugar harvest continued to weigh on sugar prices after influential sugar industry group Canaplan raised its estimate for Brazil’s sugar harvest by 5% to 29.5 million tons last Thursday.
Brazil is the world’s largest sugar producer and exporter, with the U.S. Department of Agriculture estimating the nation accounts for nearly 20% of global production and 39% of global sugar exports.
Sugar prices have lost nearly 15% since hitting a nine-month high of USD0.3184 a pound on August 24, as easing concerns over a decline in supplies from top producer Brazil dragged prices lower.
The sharp price drop spurred some bargain buying from sugar importers. The U.S. Department of Agriculture said on Tuesday that Egypt purchased 30,000 tonnes of sugar on Monday.
Elsewhere, on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange, wheat for December delivery added 0.2% to trade at USD6.7625 a bushel, corn for December delivery rose 0.4% to trade at USD6.9313 a bushel, while soybeans for November delivery eased up 0.05% to trade at USD13.3825 a bushel.
Forexpros
