Investing.com – Sugar futures were down for a third day on Tuesday, hovering close to a four-month low as easing concerns over global sugar supplies and fears over declining demand from top consumer China dragged down prices.
On the ICE Futures U.S. Exchange, sugar futures for March delivery traded at USD0.2464 a pound during European morning trade, falling 0.9%.
It earlier fell by as much as 1.4% to trade at USD0.2432 a pound, hovering close to a four-month low of USD0.2405 a pound it hit on September 26.
Easing concerns over Brazilian sugar output weighed after the country’s largest sugar producer Cosan said that the country could add up to 2 million tonnes of sugar cane to its crop over the next two seasons, as farmers increase sugar cane plantings.
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.
Meanwhile, sugar production in the world’s third largest exporter Australia was forecast to increase 8.3% to 3.9 million metric tons in the 2011-12 marketing season, the National Australia Bank said in a report earlier.
According to the lender, sugar prices may decline through late 2011 and early 2012 on “solid” production outlook in India, the European Union and Russia.
“Once production from key northern hemisphere producers comes online, there is good reason to be bearish on prices,” the report said.
Sugar prices came under further pressure as Wall Street investment bank Goldman Sachs lowered its 2012 growth forecast for China to 8.6% from a previous estimate of 9.2%, citing “slowing external conditions and weak private residential investment.”
China, the world’s largest sugar consumer, has imported 1.6 million tons of sugar in the first 11 months of 2011, with preliminary data for the full year likely to be issued around October 10.
Elsewhere, on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange, wheat for December delivery tumbled 1.6% to trade at USD6.0950 a bushel, corn for December delivery dropped 1.91% to trade at USD5.8088 a bushel, while soybeans for November delivery slumped 1.15% to trade at USD11.6388 a bushel.
On the ICE Futures U.S. Exchange, sugar futures for March delivery traded at USD0.2464 a pound during European morning trade, falling 0.9%.
It earlier fell by as much as 1.4% to trade at USD0.2432 a pound, hovering close to a four-month low of USD0.2405 a pound it hit on September 26.
Easing concerns over Brazilian sugar output weighed after the country’s largest sugar producer Cosan said that the country could add up to 2 million tonnes of sugar cane to its crop over the next two seasons, as farmers increase sugar cane plantings.
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.
Meanwhile, sugar production in the world’s third largest exporter Australia was forecast to increase 8.3% to 3.9 million metric tons in the 2011-12 marketing season, the National Australia Bank said in a report earlier.
According to the lender, sugar prices may decline through late 2011 and early 2012 on “solid” production outlook in India, the European Union and Russia.
“Once production from key northern hemisphere producers comes online, there is good reason to be bearish on prices,” the report said.
Sugar prices came under further pressure as Wall Street investment bank Goldman Sachs lowered its 2012 growth forecast for China to 8.6% from a previous estimate of 9.2%, citing “slowing external conditions and weak private residential investment.”
China, the world’s largest sugar consumer, has imported 1.6 million tons of sugar in the first 11 months of 2011, with preliminary data for the full year likely to be issued around October 10.
Elsewhere, on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange, wheat for December delivery tumbled 1.6% to trade at USD6.0950 a bushel, corn for December delivery dropped 1.91% to trade at USD5.8088 a bushel, while soybeans for November delivery slumped 1.15% to trade at USD11.6388 a bushel.