* March raw sugar edged up 0.1% to 21.41 cents per lb at 1523 GMT, still short of a six-year peak of 21.89 cents hit early Feb.
* Dealers said sugar continues to derive support from chatter that production in India will drop rapidly this season due to the cane maturing early and losing weight.
* They noted that Alvean, the world's largest sugar trader, is pegging Indian production at 33.5 million tonnes, with many others seeing it even lower.
* Egypt's strategic reserves of sugar are sufficient to meet supply for more than three months, the supply ministry said.
* Singapore-listed Wilmar International reported
a 27% rise in its full-year net profit, underpinned by robust
performance across core segments including sugar.
* May white sugar rose 0.1% to $570.40 a tonne.
COFFEE
* May arabica coffee rose 3.7% to $1.9250 per lb,
having hit its highest since mid-October at $1,9295.
* The market has been driven primarily by concern over
soaring prices in the physical markets in top producers Brazil
and Colombia.
* Brazilian coffee farmers sold 78% of the current crop
(2022/23, July-June) by Feb. 15, a slower selling pace than seen
at this time last year (86%), consultancy Safras & Mercado said.
* May robusta coffee rose 0.4% to $2,126 a tonne
after touching a four-month high of $2,130.
COCOA
* May London cocoa fell 1.5% to 2,113 pounds a
tonne. It had risen on Friday to a six-year high of 2,155
pounds.
* Ivory Coast's Cocoa and Coffee Council (CCC) said on
Monday that Ivorian cocoa exporters would still be able to
honour their contracts despite a slowdown in port arrivals.
* The CCC was responding to reports that cocoa exporters in
the world's top-producing nation were close to defaulting on
their contracts due to a lack of beans from the main harvest.
* May New York cocoa slipped 0.1% to $2,769 a tonne,
having hit its highest in a year at $2,812.
(Reporting by Maytaal Angel; editing by Jason Neely and Ed
Osmond)
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maytaal.angel@thomsonreuters.com(00442075429105)(Reuters
Messaging: maytaal.angel.thomsonreuters.com@reuters.net)
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