Cocoa prices maintain momentum amidst shrinking supply

Cocoa prices continued their upward climb throughout last week. Though prices recorded a mild deceleration in their upward climb during the week, cocoa gained about $ 67.20/ tonne to settle higher at the end of the week.
Cocoa which opened the week at $ 2318.89/tonne closed higher at $ 2386.09/tonne. According to Michael Segal, information and media officer, International Cocoa Organization (ICCO), the acceleration in prices is due primarily to the expectation with respect to harvest this year.

There is the strong likelihood that output will not match what was produced last year. Rainfall and peculiarities of the nations where cocoa is exported were responsible. According to Segel, some of the traders are nervous about the supply dynamics hence the appreciation in price.

There are opportunities in this market for Nigerian farmers and traders who can take advantage of these prices. Cocoa is Nigeria’s second-biggest foreign-exchange earner after crude oil. The Ivory Coast , Ghana and Indonesia produce more cocoa than Nigeria , according to the ICCO.

Exports of cocoa products from Nigeria , the fourth-largest producer of the beans, rose 47 percent to $822.8 million in 2010. This represents about 35 percent of the $2.32 billion earnings from non-oil exports in 2010 for Nigeria . Cobalt International Services inspects all Nigerian non-oil products at the ports before export.

www.icco.org

Source: OBODO EJIRO www.businessdayonline.com

info@africabusinesscommunities.com

Be Sociable, Share!

Follow us on Twitter!

www.twitter.com/africabizz
https://twitter.com/Quantusbabes