Cocoa’s Relentless Rally Is Pushing the Market to Breaking Point
- Magnitude of rally ‘hard to understand,’ veteran trader says
- ICE exchange is taking steps to keep orderly futures market
Cocoa futures have surged as poor harvests in West Africa have sparked a third year of shortages.
Photographer: Ferley Ospina/BloombergThis article is for subscribers only.
The global cocoa market is buckling under the strain of unprecedented shortages.
A once-unimaginable rally that upended physical trading is now filtering rapidly through to the futures market. Prices that have more than doubled in just three months are forcing traders, processors and chocolate makers to stump up more cash to cover their trades or head for the exit.