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| Commodities Report
RUBBER: Rubber futures ploughed higher as heavy rains in Southeast Asia raised concerns about production levels. "Some further reports came this week about supply, and since then the market has moved higher and higher," said Chris Caiger, an analyst at brokerage firm Symington. BizVantage – When knowing counts: Business, Investing, Technology. "The weather is still very bad in Thailand and Indonesia. "People are concerned about getting the raw materials, about the very tight supply. It is a delicate time at the moment. The consumers still need to buy," he added. In Kuala Lumpur, the RSS 1 index gained to 5.165 ringgit per kilo on Thursday from 4.965 ringgit the previous week. COCOA: Cocoa prices showed signs of stabilising after recent falls, in a week dominated by technical factors. Traders were also closely monitoring whether farmers in the Ivory Coast might again hold back supplies due to low prices. "Traders continue to keep a wary eye on farmer price dissatisfaction and monitor talk of beans being held back," said Refco analyst Anne Prendergast. However, "prices have a tendency to deteriorate between now and December on hedge selling," she added. On LIFFE, London's financial futures exchange, the price of cocoa for December delivery edged down marginally to 847 pounds a tonne on Thursday from 849 the previous week. On the CSCE, the New York futures market, the December contract gained to 1, 429 dollars per tonne from 1,409. COFFEE: Coffee futures dipped on a mix of investment fund sales coupled with expectations of a bumper crop ahead. "The failure to attract any fresh buying combined with negative sentiment that the 2004/5 crop would be better than expected forced the market to new 14-month lows," said Refco's Prendergast. On LIFFE, Robusta quality for November delivery slipped to 665 dollars per tonne on Thursday from 685 dollars the previous week. On New York's CSCE market, Arabica for December delivery declined to 59.70 cents a pound from 62.50 cents the previous week. SUGAR: Sugar prices ticked upwards as a result of some speculative buying, although analysts said the market remained adequately supplies. A huge sugar harvest is predicted for Brazil, while record crops are also likely in China and Thailand. On LIFFE, the price of a tonne of white sugar for December delivery gained to 177.10 dollars on Thursday from 174.50 a week earlier. On the CSCE in New York, a pound of unrefined sugar for March delivery increased to 6.19 cents from 5.94 cents. GRAINS AND SOYA: Grain and soya prices were mostly higher due to a sharp upturn in demand from China. Chinese demand for soyabeans was "sky high", said an analyst from brokers Fimat, requesting anonymity. "And the Chinese government has asked exporters to hold exports of corn because of fears of shortage next year," he added. On LIFFE, the price of a tonne of wheat for November delivery rose to 97.05 pounds from 93.90 a week earlier. In Chicago, wheat for December delivery was essentially unchanged at 369 cents a bushel from 369.50. Maize for December delivery gained to 247.75 cents a bushel from 239. Soyabeans for November delivery rose to 793.50 cents a bushel from 763.50. December-dated soyabean meal -- used in animal feed -- gained to 254.70 dollars per tonne from 239. COTTON: Cotton prices were generally firm on the back of bumper US export sales, ramped up by Chinese purchasing. According to the US Department of Agriculture, US export sales reached 1.43 million bales in the week to October 23, an all-time record, with almost 90 percent bought by China. "Sales were two and a quarter times the week earlier, and nearly five times the prior four-week average," said Refco's Prendergast. New York's December contract inched down to 79.73 cents a pound on Thursday from 80.59 the previous week. The Cotton Outlook Index of physical cotton, the average of the world's lowest prices, gained to 79.55 cents from 74.25. WOOL: Wool prices slipped back again, although interest from Chinese buyers limited the decline. "While buying for China again led the market with support from the topmakers, there were reports of greater breadth in the buying activity this week," the Australian Wool Industries Secretariat said in a weekly report. The Australian Eastern index edged down to 8.07 Australian dollars per kilo from 8.10 dollars the previous week. The British Wooltops index slipped to 498 pence from 509 pence. pf-pw-dr/wai Commodities
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