Rising chocolate costs: Cocoa prices hit a record $10,000

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The stock exchange value of cocoa beans in the world reached a new historical record – $10,000 for 1 ton. Since the beginning of the year, it has increased 2.4 times.

This will lead to an increase in the cost of chocolate. Bloomberg writes about it.

Among the main reasons for such dynamics is abnormally hot weather in Côte d'Ivoire, which endangers the harvest of cocoa beans. At the same time, the demand for cocoa and chocolate in the world's leading economies remains high. The upward trend in prices is also linked to difficulties with shipping in the Red Sea.

The supply situation in West Africa remains extremely tight ahead of next week's harvest, – the Hightower Report notes.

Prior to that, the exchange value of cocoa beans reached a historical record at the beginning of February – more than $5.5 thousand per ton. The previous all-time record was set in 1977, when it was $5.4 thousand.

The International Cocoa Organization forecasts that this season's stock-to-processing ratio will fall to its lowest level in more than four decades, reflecting a shaky market situation. Shares of chocolate makers including Hershey Co., Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory Inc. and Mondelez International Inc., declined.

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