LONDON (Reuters) – Raw sugar futures on ICE rose on fund and investor buying on Monday as the market advanced towards last week’s 29-year high, but some dealers saw strong immediate resistance at the psychological 30 cents a lb. Dealers said the market was keenly waiting to see if major physical buyers such as Pakistan, Iran and Indonesia would be prepared to pay current high prices before mounting another challenge to last week’s peak. “Sugar is having trouble getting to 30 (cents)…but if it makes 30 no doubt we will see a whole slew of automatic trading come in and massive buying,” said VM Group analyst Gary Mead. “I don’t know if there is much more bad (bullish) fundamental news to come out. I think that is the difficulty for the really rampant bulls who think it is going to soar.” ICE March raw sugar futures rose 0.40 cent or 1.4 percent to 29.18 cents a lb. The contract climbed to a 29-year peak of 29.82 cents last week, falling just shy of the widely targeted 30 cents level. London March white sugar futures were up $1.5 or 0.2 percent to $748.50 per tonne.

Cocoa digests N American grind: Cocoa futures moved sideways as the market consolidated after last week’s fourth-quarter 2009 North American grind figures, a measure of demand, were down 1.5 percent year-on-year. “Nobody really thought they (fourth-quarter grinds) were going to be radically improved,” Mead said, noting the figures were in line with expectations. “I think what is happening is that manufacturers are still buying hand to mouth because they look at the price and think this is ridiculously expensive.” The cocoa market remained underpinned by signs that demand was slowly recovering after a recession-linked decline in the first half of 2009. Malaysia’s cocoa grindings rose 1.3 percent in the fourth quarter of 2009 to 74,993 tonnes after three straight quarters of decline, the Malaysian Cocoa Board said on Monday. ICE March cocoa futures fell $14 or 0.4 percent to $3,411 per tonne, while London May cocoa was unchanged at 2,341 pounds per tonne. Arabica coffee futures edged up supported by the weak dollar, but remained well within their current trading band in light trade. ICE March arabicas were up 0.60 cent or 0.4 percent at $1.4020 per lb, while London March robustas were up $10 or 0.7 percent at $1,370 per tonne.

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