Daily Market Price Updates and Commentary 17th August 2026

No.11 opened at 16.56 and initially came under pressure, falling to the session low of 16.47 before reversing sharply higher. The recovery gathered momentum through the morning, with prices pushing above 16.80 and into the 16.90s, potentially reflecting short covering alongside speculative buying. The market then softened through late morning and early afternoon, retracing towards the 16.60 area and briefly testing the mid-16.50s. From there, buying interest returned and No.11 staged a strong afternoon recovery, moving back through 16.80 and 16.90 before reaching the session high so far of 16.96. There was some correction in the next our, but in the final moments, sugar tried to test new highs but closed at 16.90. Settlement price was 16.87, 27 points up from previous session. Volume traded was about 106k lots still above average levels.

No.5 opened at 510.70 and initially came under pressure, falling to the session low of 509.20 before reversing sharply higher. The recovery quickly gathered momentum, with prices breaking above 518.00 and extending into the 523.00–524.00 area. The market then eased back through the middle of the session, with choppy two-way trade taking prices towards 517.00 before another pronounced dip briefly pushed the market into the 514.00–515.00 area. Buying interest subsequently returned and No.5 staged a strong recovery, moving back through 520.00 and continuing higher to reach the session high so far of 524.50. Prices have since retreated from the highs back to 520 but followed to close near highs, at 523.3. Volume traded was about 13k lots and VZ arb strengthened to 146.8.