Cofco Builds Dubai Soft Commodities Hub Targeting Global Reach

Location provides better access to global sugar regions: Cofco
Company is looking to bring sugar strategy to coffee, cotton

Freshly roasted coffee beans sit in a roasting tub at the Skybury Coffee Pty coffee plantation in the Atherton Tablelands, Queensland, Australia, on Tuesday, Aug. 1, 2017. While Australia’s second-quarter economic growth data will be a highlight next week, currency traders are more likely to look toward a widening yield spread with the U.S., rising commodity prices and improving jobs data for catalysts to lift the Aussie above 80 cents.Photographer: Carla Gottgens/Bloomberg

Provide news feedback or report an error

Confidential tip?

Send a tip to our reporters

Site feedback:

Take our Survey

By Isis Almeida

February 9, 2018 at 7:06 AM UTC

This article is for subscribers only.

Cofco International Ltd., the trading arm of China’s largest food company, is building a soft commodities hub in Dubai as the new location gives it better access to more sugar producing and consuming regions.

Marcelo de Andrade, head of that business, has relocated to Dubai from Brazil to establish the trading hub, he said in an interview at the Dubai Sugar Conference this week. About 10 employees will trade sugar, coffee and cotton and Cofco’s Dubai office will soon move to the Dubai Multi Commodities Centre, where gold to diamond traders are located.