(Ecofin Agency) – Since the start of 2024, cocoa prices have been at high levels, reaching a historic record in December. This situation could worsen further in 2025 with the downward revision of the expected harvest in Ghana, the world's second largest producer of beans.
In Ghana, the cocoa harvest is now expected at 617,500 tonnes for the 2024/2025 campaign which began last September. This is what reports Bloomberg citing sources close to the industry who requested anonymity.
The announced stock reflects a drop of 5% compared to the harvest forecast of 650,000 tonnes formulated by the Cocoa Council (Cocobod) at the start of the campaign. This downward revision is mainly attributed to the arrival of the harmattan, whose hot and dry winds are expected to affect orchard productivity until next February.
More broadly, this development in the Ghanaian sector should reinforce concerns related to the supply of cocoa on the international market, especially since Ivory Coast, the world's leading producer, has also reduced its harvest estimates by nearly 14 %, to 1.9 million tonnes, for similar reasons.
It should be noted that concerns related to the supply of cocoa from these two countries have revived the surge in the price of the bean, which had fallen below the $10,000 per tonne mark until the beginning of December. .
Thus, on the day of December 18 in New York, the most active cocoa contract reached $12,636 per tonne, the highest level ever recorded, erasing the previous record of $12,220 reached on April 15. and capping several weeks of increases.
Stéphanas Assocle
Edited by Wilfried ASSOGBA
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