Noticias cacao 14 julio

DJ ICE Cocoa Review: September Rallies 3.6% On EU Grind, London
DOW JONES NEWSWIRES


Cocoa futures rallied to 9 1/2-week highs Wednesday, riding a wave of
improved demand expectations following stronger-than-expected reports on
European consumption.

Most active September cocoa gained $108, or 3.6%, to settle at $3,153 a
metric ton on ICE Futures U.S. in New York.

Thinly traded July rose $108, or 3.6%, to $3,134 a ton.

Cocoa grindings--the amount of cocoa beans ground into powder to make cocoa,
cocoa products and chocolate--hit 328,704 tons in the second quarter, up 12.7%
on the year, the European Cocoa Association said Wednesday. The report marks
the third-consecutive quarter of higher grindings, proof that consumption
continues to pick up after the global economic recession that hit demand in
2009.

Speculative buying took ICE cocoa higher. Smaller amounts of producer, or
end-users of the commodity, selling were seen at the highs.

The increase in grindings comes at a time when cocoa supplies are shrinking,
as top grower Ivory Coast harvests smaller crops due to aging orchards and a
lack of investment in the sector. Growers' preference for more lucrative rubber
trees has also hurt cocoa output.

Ivory Coast producers are harvesting the smaller mid-crop and supplies won't
increase significantly until October when the much larger main-crop harvest
begins.

Traders have also been concerned about excessive rainfall in western Africa,
as too much moisture and not enough sunshine to adequately dry the beans can
foster disease and degrade bean quality, a trader said.

The strong EU data may be a harbinger of second-quarter North American
grindings, which are scheduled for release on Thursday.

"Certainly people would make that type of assumption," said Jack Scoville,
analyst and vice president at Price Futures Group in Chicago.

In the first quarter, North American grindings rose 16.2% to 116,122 tons.

London cocoa closed at record highs. September cocoa traded on NYSE
Euronext's Liffe rallied GBP39, or 1.6%, to settle at GBP2,436 a ton. The
contract peaked at $2,465, the highest price for cocoa in 23 years.

Open interest in cocoa rose 491 to total 123,423 lots, ICE reported. Just 12
positions remained open in July ahead of its expiration on Thursday.

Futures volume is pegged at 21,064 lots, with 831 calls and 974 put options
traded.

ICE Change Range
July $3,134 up 108 3,131 - 3,134
Sep $3,153 up 108 3,055 - 3,164

* ICE settlements in dollars per metric ton with intraday range.