It is reported by xm.com.

Sugarcane crushing fell 3.25% in the period to 45.07 million tonnes (see tables below). Sugar output was in line with market expectations, while crushing came in slightly ahead of the 44.99 million tonnes forecast by analysts polled by S&P Global Commodity Insights.

Sugarcane allocation to produce sugar, the so-called sugar mix, came in below estimates at 48.8%, with the rest of the cane going for ethanol production which was up 6% at 2.45 billion liters.

«If we look at a progression of the last three reports, the sugar mix has gone from 50.28%, to 49.27% to now 48.85%. That would seem to show that the condition of the cane is deteriorating», — said sugar analysts McDougall Global View in a report.

«It's all about the mix. Cane fires change the mix... Forecasters using a 49-49.5% mix for the season will need to revise asap», — said an European sugar broker.

UNICA saidthat at least 231,830 hectares (572,864 acres) of sugarcane fields were affected by fires that ravaged Sao Paulo state, including 132,040 hectares that were still to be harvested.

The damage should impose greater difficulty on mills to produce sugar while intensifying a drop in agricultural yields, the group said.