Posted on 07/17/2010 1:00:51 AM PDT by bruinbirdman
Even Willy Wonka might struggle to use this much chocolate. Yesterday, somebody bought 241,000 tonnes of cocoa beans.
The purchase was enough to move the entire global cocoa market, sending the price to the highest level since 1977, and triggering rumours and intrigue in the City.
It is unclear which person, or group of traders, was behind the deal, but it was the largest single cocoa trade for 14 years.
The cocoa beans, which are sitting in warehouses either in The Netherlands, Hamburg, or closer to home in London, Liverpool or Humberside is equivalent to the entire supply of the commodity in Europe, and would fill more than five Titanics. They are worth £658 million.
Analysts said it was very unlikely that a chocolate company, such as Nestle or Kraft, or even their suppliers, would buy such a huge order in one go and that is was probable that one or a number of speculators, possibly hedge funds, had attempted to corner the market. By doing this, they would have control of the entire supply in Europe, forcing the price yet higher.
Eugen Weinberg, an analyst with Commerzbank, said: “For one buyer it would likely be a little bit too large. It would be a crazy number. That said, if you’re cornering the market ...”
“If it looks like cornering, feels like cornering and the price difference between Europe and the US is so large, it probably is cornering.”
“There is some play taking place. No one really knows what is going on.”
Cocoa prices, which had been on the rise this year, rose 0.7 per cent yesterday, to £2,732 per metric ton. By contrast, cocoa being traded on the US exchange fell.
(Excerpt) Read more at telegraph.co.uk ...
OK, it was me.
Hmmm.
Interesting.
Darn Chocolate it is the one item that seems to dissapear from our prepper stockade.
Guess if there is an emergency I will have to buy a stockade while others are buying the other essentials.
Soros?
Obama’s fault... Michelle doesn’t want us eating chocolate...
now I’m REALLY PISSED!!!!
Brown gold
To me, this makes no sense. Chocolate? It isn’t a necessity. Chocolate is a luxury. It is also perishable. If the price is too high for me, I’m disappointed but nothing essentially changes. So, corner this market? Just wait for next year’s crop.
Chocolate is luxury and not a necessity? Thou speakest blasphemy! To the fires with Jemian! :)
Lindsay Lohan needs comfort.
I know, I know. My family says that. But I decided many years ago that the joys of eating chocolate didn’t outweigh the pain of a migraine and so ... if that buyer thought he’d sell it to me, he just lost big time.
This is why we all need to end our dependence on foreign cocoa. :-)
Somebody’s gonna wake up with a hangover ...... and a lot of cocoa.
Chocolate? Meh...
If it was beer, I’d be worried.
$1B of cocoa? €1B of Spanish bonds.
Cocoa as a hedge against Spanish bonds? Naw.
A Bass resurrection?
yitbos
This is what happens when more & more money is created (printed).
Gov. Nicholls Warf looks in good shape. So does Chartres St.
Heck they all do, now.
yitbos
Yech—look at those fingernails!
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