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Ivory Coast's president-elect Alassane Ouattara imposes cocoa export ban

The price of cocoa is expected to spike on Monday after the Ivory Coast's president-elect, Alassane Ouattara, imposed a one-month ban on cocoa exports in an effort to oust his rival.

Ivory Coast's president-elect Alassane Ouattara imposes cocoa export ban 

By James Hurley 6:59PM GMT 23 Jan 2011

 

Mr Ouattara, the internationally recognised victor of disputed elections last November, sent a letter to leading exporters on Sunday ordering them to stop shipments from today until February 23.

Since cocoa represents the country's main source of income, he is hoping to cut the funding his rival Laurient Gbagbo needs to fund the public sector and the military,

Ivory Coast is the world's largest producer of cocoa beans and accounts for approximately one third of global production.

The price of cocoa had already hit a five-month high last week – at $2, 150 (£1,340) per tonne in London – over concerns about political unrest following the disputed election.

Traders will now be concerned that exports could stop as soon as Monday and it is thought that the price could jump by as much as 10pc when markets open.

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In the letter, which is countersigned by justice minister Jeannot Ahoussou, Mr Ouattara warned: "All operators which contravene [these] instructions would be exposed to national and international sanctions."

The world's largest cocoa traders were on Sunday night reportedly planning an emergency call with the industry body, the Federation of Cocoa Commerce (FCC), to discuss the crisis. The FCC and the European Cocoa Association are expected to attempt to coordinate markets on Monday, with the organisations planning to ask Mr Ouattara to clarify the situation.