Markets
Fourth quarter decline in cocoa output in Ghana and Côte d’Ivoire surprises ICCO
Although a good crop is still anticipated for the 2021-22 season, the ICCO said the arrivals and purchases of cocoa beans from the two-top producing countries were reported to be down by 4% in Cote d’Ivoire, and a staggering 54% in Ghana.
Neighbouring Cameroon also said its cocoa exports were lower than expected in the fourth quarter.
In a statement, the ICCO said that at this stage, “it is unknown whether we are in presence of a poor season or other factors are affecting the evacuation of beans from upcountry.”
According to Le Conseil du Café-Cacao, since the beginning of the 2021-22 season, arrivals at ports reached 1.178 million tonnes as at 16 January 2022, down from 1.227 million tonnes recorded a year ago.
In Ghana, purchases of graded and sealed cocoa beans for the 2021-22 cocoa year as at 6 January 2022 were reported at 263,000 tonnes, down from 570,000 tonnes recorded a year earlier.
Moving forward, the ICCO said adequate temperature and rainfall together with the mild Harmattan (regional wind) recorded in the previous months anticipated a good crop for the 2021- 22 season.
In the ICCO’s Market Report for December 2021, it said that at the end of 2021, the annual average price for cocoa of the nearby contract in London had tumbled by 5% compared to the previous calendar year.
During the same period in New York, the average of the first position contract prices weakened by 1% year-on-year.
Furthermore, the ICCO said, the annual average of the US-denominated ICCO daily price stood at US$2,427 per tonne, up by 3% compared to level reached the previous year.
Europe
Cocoa average of the Euro-denominated prices slightly dropped by 1% year-over-year, attaining €2,054 per tonne in 2021.
In Germany, the German Confectionery Industry (BDSI) said its members had processed a total of 101,149.9 tonnes of cocoa in its fourth quarter, an increase of 8.8% compared to the same quarter of the previous year.
In 2020, cocoa grinding had dropped sharply due to the coronavirus pandemic, but the European Cocoa Organisation (ECA) reports that in the fourth quarter of 2021 365,826 tonnes of raw cocoa were ground in Europe - an increase of 6.3% compared to the same quarter of the previous year.
