Arabica-Coffee Futures Climb Above 2-Month High; Sugar Sinks

  NEW YORK  -  Arabica-coffee prices rose to the highest level in more than two months on Wednesday as

traders saw demand for the beans picking up.

  Arabica coffee for delivery in March on the ICE Futures U.S. exchange gained 1.6% to end at

$1.1595 a pound, the highest settlement for the most actively traded contract since Oct. 15.

  "We've been seeing more (buying) interest from exporters," said Thiago Cazarini, founder of coffee

brokerage Cazarini Trading Company, based in Varginha, Brazil.

  Stockpiles of green, or unroasted, coffee in the U.S. fell 2% last month to 5.088 million

60-kilogram bags, according to the Green Coffee Association, a trade group. It was the third

consecutive month of drawdowns on stockpiles.

  Lackluster demand and back-to-back bumper crops from top grower Brazil helped push arabica-coffee

prices to a seven-year low. Unless demand improves further, prices could fall again, Mr. Cazarini

said.

"It's still a quiet market," he said.

  Raw-sugar futures fell to the lowest point since June 29, 2010, as heavy global supplies continued

to weigh on the market. Prices have fallen for seven of the last 10 sessions, and the contract for

March delivery lost 0.4% to end at 15.89 cents a pound.

  Futures of frozen orange-juice concentrate for March delivery ended 0.05 cent lower at $1.4380 a

pound. Cocoa for March fell $1 to settle at $2,770 a ton.

Cotton for delivery in March ended 0.05 cent higher at 83 cents a pound.