* ICE exchange cancels trades in cocoa after spike
* Sugar and cocoa retreat, coffee quietly mixed
Cocoa futures in the U.S. gyrated violently Tuesday in suspected computer-generated dealings which prompted the exchange to cancel some tr ades as traditional players complained of market distortion.
Cocoa futures on ICE Futures U.S. sank $450 in 60 seconds before rebounding a whopping $349 a minute, a striking move since the market had hit 32-year highs Tuesday due to unrest in top producer Ivory Coast.
Soft commodity markets were largely weaker across the board, with cocoa and raw sugar on the retreat while coffee was mixed in mostly slow business.
New York's May cocoa contract <CCK1> dropped $75 to close at $3,620 per tonne, one day after posting the highest settlement close in 32 years.
Liffe's May cocoa contract <LCCK1> shed 56 pounds to close at 2,325 pounds per tonne, well below the new contract peak of 2,389 pounds hit during Tuesday's session.
"We're consolidating. There's a dearth of news out there," said Sterling Smith, a senior analyst for who covers a variety of commodity markets for brokers Country Hedging Inc. in Minnesota.
The cocoa market was underpinned by concerns that Ivory Coast, the world's top cocoa producer, could edge into civil war, which could lead to severe supply disruptions.
The trade is particularly worried whether presidential claimant Alassane Ouattara will extend a ban on cocoa exports he imposed from Jan. 24, a move that has been largely heeded by exporters. [ID:nLDE71L1S3]
"Political events in the country have taken a turn for the worse," said Abah Ofon, an analyst at Standard Chartered Bank.
An export ban, sanctions against the country and bank closures have limited the local industry's activity.
"Reports on the ground indicate that farmers are likely to abandon their mid-season crop because of lack of access to finance for the rehabilitation of their trees," Ofon said.
"In our view, the bigger output risk will be on production prospects for the 2011/12 main season crop, owing to the disruption of normal banking activities, which will restrict pre-season financing," Ofon added.
SUGAR AND COFFEE LOWER
Sugar futures slipped as the trade digested delivery of 18,748 lots or 965,000 tonnes of raw sugar against the expired March raw sugar contract.
"I would hope that, with the market pulling back, this will stimulate physical off-take," said Toby Cohen, a director of London-based trade house Czarnikow.
New York's May raw sugar contract <SBK1> fell 0.19 cent to conclude at 29.26 cents per lb and London's May white sugar futures <LSUc1> fell $10.40 to close at $733.40 per tonne.
Sugar prices have fallen by around 20 percent since hitting a 30-year high of 36.08 cents a lb on Feb. 2. Czarnikow on Tuesday revised up its forecast for the 2010/11 global sugar deficit to 3.7 million tonnes from its previous forecast of a deficit of 2.8 million tonnes due to adverse weather in key producing countries.
Coffee futures were steady to easier in light trade. New York's May arabica coffee futures <KCK1> fell 2.40 cents to finish at $2.693 per lb. London's May robusta coffee <LRCc.2> closed unchanged at
$2,384 per tonne.
source: https://portal.hpd.global.reuters.com/site/applist.aspx
