SOFTS-Coffee gains amid low stocks and as tariffs freeze US-Brazil trade

LONDON, Aug 8 (Reuters) - Coffee futures on ICE rose on Friday, heading for gains of 8% on the week, as U.S.-Brazil trade remains frozen due to the Trump administration's tariffs, and as stocks continue to slide.

Cocoa and sugar also rose.

COFFEE

Arabica coffee futures KCc1 rose 2.5% to $2.9840 per lb at 1509 GMT, having hit a near three-week high of $3.0230.

Dealers said there are next to no new trades between the U.S. and top coffee grower Brazil after Trump imposed a 50% tariff on Brazilian goods.

As for existing trades, coffee loaded in Brazil by the August 6 tariff deadline can enter the U.S. without paying the tariff, provided it arrives by October 6.

The U.S. gets about a third of its coffee from Brazil, and market participants are for now drawing on ICE-certified stocks KC-TOT-TOT, which have fallen to a more than one-year low.

Hopes the U.S. will exempt Brazilian coffee from tariffs are dimming meanwhile. Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva has said he sees no room for direct talks with Trump.

Robusta coffee LRCc2 rose 1.9% to $3,441 a metric ton.

SUGAR

Raw sugar SBc1 ​​​​rose 1.8% to 16.29 cents/lb.

The UN's Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) said its sugar price index eased for a fifth consecutive month in July on expectations of increased production in Brazil and India, despite signs of recovering sugar import demand.

Dealers, however, noted ongoing concerns about the ATR (sugar content) in top grower Brazil's cane in 2025/26.

France's constitutional court on Thursday blocked the re-introduction of a pesticide accused of harming bees.

White sugar LSUc1 rose 1.8% to $471 a ton.

COCOA

London cocoa LCCc2 rose 1.2% to 5,476 pounds per ton, heading for gains of 2% this week.

New York cocoa CCc2 rose 0.4% to $8,091 a ton.