Cocoa climbed in New York amid persistent concerns over shortages that have roiled the market and driven prices to a record high.

Futures jumped as much as 4.1 per cent, before paring some of the gain as the week started with jittery trading. Prices recently surged above US$10,000 a ton as poor West African harvests put the world on course for a third straight annual deficit.

In one of the latest signs of how scarce supplies are in top producer Ivory Coast, the country’s regulator is asking buyers to wait for the mid-crop harvest to get delivery of about 130,000 tons of beans, Bloomberg reported on Friday (Apr 5).

Shifting contracts to the harvest that just started means that the nation’s unmet exports – plus the volume already sold to local grinders – is now riding on the smaller of two annual crops, which ends in September.

“There’s no longer cocoa in the pipeline and certified stocks shall run dry soon,” said Northon Coimbrao, director of sourcing at chocolatier Natra. BLOOMBERG