DJ MARKET TALK: ICE Coffee Ends Flat After Mixed Session

2:56 p.m. EDT [Dow Jones]–Arabica coffee futures for September delivery closed near unchanged levels Tuesday after a mixed session that lacked conviction by bulls or bears. September touched an early top of $1.7200 a pound–a three-session high–and spent
the remainder of the day paring those gains. While coffee found underlying support from the continued lack of top-quality arabica beans, weak outside influences trimmed those gains. Renewed economic concerns encouraged traders to buy the U.S. dollar on a flight-to-safety play, while they dumped commodities amid the unstable economic environment. Trading is being dominated by the spreads.

Brazilian green coffee exports in July totaled 2.17 million 60-kilogram bags, up from 2 million in July 2009, data from the Brazilian Green Coffee Exporters Council show. Arabica beans accounted for 83% of total exports. Futures volume is pegged at 29,089 contracts traded, with 4,643 calls and 2,602 put options traded. Nearby September coffee on ICE added 0.05 cent, or 0.03%, to settle at $1.6965 a pound. (TVS)