Cocoa prices hit new peaks amid bleak production outlook

Prices for chocolate-making raw material cocoa rose to fresh peaks on Thursday, accumulating gains above 10% this week alone, amid reports of negative production outlook for the world's second largest grower. London cocoa futures on ICE exchange surged past the psychological 5,000 pound barrier on Thursday while New York cocoa breached the $6,000 mark, as supply tightness propelled both markets to fresh record highs. Cocoa prices in London closed 1.7% up to 5,062 pounds per metric ton, after earlier hitting a peak at 5,100 pounds.