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  • Nov 10th, 2005
  • Comments Off on Low prices choke flow of Ivory Coast cocoa
Cocoa arrivals at Ivory Coast's ports are slowing as many farmers choose to hold back their beans until falling farmgate prices begin to rise, buyers and exporters said on Wednesday.

World prices have been falling due to a healthy crop forecast and relative calm in the world's top cocoa grower since President Laurent Gbagbo's five-year mandate ended on October 30 without elections to choose a successor.

Any fall in world prices directly affects farmers as exporters and buyers seek to protect their profit margins by offering less for beans.

Ivory Coast's (October-March) main crop season is in full swing with large amounts of beans harvested, but exporters in Abidjan said some farmers were refusing to sell at the prices they were being offered, restricting the flow of cocoa.

Arrivals were estimated at 220,000-230,000 tonnes of beans between the start of October and November 6.

Copyright Reuters, 2005


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