Philippines to ship 55,590-MT D sugar to seven countries, says SRA

The Philippines will ship up to 55,590 metric tons of raw sugar to the world market this month, bringing the export volume to around 300,000 so far this crop year ending Aug. 31, the Sugar Regulatory Administration said Wednesday.   Twelve traders will ship the D sugar to the US, Vietnam, Korea, Indonesia, China, Japan and Taiwan, said SRA administrator Gina Bautista-Martin   With the price of sugar in the world market getting better, there will be additional shipments for D sugar, Bautista-Martin added.   The shipments are priced against New York Sugar No. 11 that was at $0.25 as of end February, said Butch Alisla, the administrator’s chief of staff, said in a phone interview with GMA News Online.   The traders involved are All Asia, Central Azucarera Bais, Central Azucarera Don Pedro, Central Azucarera San Antonio, Crystal Sugar, Delmax, Ed and F Man, Masagana, Northern Negros Mill, Sucden Phils, Oro Allado, and URC-Sonedco.   Another 50,000 MT of D sugar will be shipped bringing the volume under this category to around 350,000 MT for crop year 2011-2012.   However, Alisla said the additional 50,000 MT “will depend on the world market’s appetite for the shipment, but it will definitely ship out before Aug. 31.”   The SRA would like the timing for the last shipment to be in sync with domestic demand without having a negative impact on the commodity’s price in the Philippines.   Philippine sugar output as of Feb. 26, 2012 was more than 1.5 million MT, up 12.26 percent from the year earlier period, SRA data showed.   The output for crop year 2011-2012 is estimated at 2.242 million MT, down from nearly 2.4 million a year earlier.   Alisla said there was too much rain and less sunshine in the second half of 2011, and hampered the growth of sugarcane. — VS, GMA News