The cocoa price in New York has increased significantly and reached an 18-month high of USD 2,669/t. Commerzbank Research said traders are blaming the surge on concerns about short-term availability.

“It is not clear why supply should be tight in the short-term,” Commerzbank said. Shipments from Ivory Coast are in full swing and totalled 446,000 t from the start of the harvest in early October up to and including 10 November. This puts them 5.7 percent above the corresponding period last year.

Commerzbank added: “What is more, weather conditions are favourable. It is possible that the high buying interest is also due to the additional price premium of USD 400 per ton that will have to be paid by buyers from next crop year.”

Ghana has already contracted 200,000 t of cocoa from the 2020/21 crop, including the USD 400 premium.