Specifically in the second week of May, the quality premium traded on demerara sugar quotes at ICE Futures dropped, favoring the increase of the Brazilian market advantage.
According to data from Cepea, sales in the domestic market remunerated 11.5 per cent more than exports from May 6-10. While the CEPEA/ESALQ Index of crystal sugar averaged 45.27 reais or 22.49 dollars per 50-kilo bag, price quotes July 2013 delivery at ICE Futures. This would be equivalent to the average price of 40.60 reais or 20.17 dollars per bag. For this calculation, it was considered 102.03 dollars per ton FOB costs and 90.00 dollars per ton of quality premium. The premium used in exports from April 1 to May 3, on average, was 104.00 dollars per ton.
In the spot market in São Paulo State, prices have been registering slight oscillations. Weather conditions were favorable for the sugarcane harvesting in early May.
Some purchasers, in turn, preferred to trade only small amounts, expecting prices to resume decreasing due to advances of the crushing. On the other hand, other buyers purchased larger volumes because of needs to acquire the product. Some trades still involved the product from the previous season.
On May 15, the CEPEA/ESALQ Index of crystal sugar (São Paulo state) closed at 44.63 reais or 22.03 dollars (50-kilo bag), moving down 1.74 per cent compared to April 30.
