Brazil fire razes major world sugar terminal

[SAO PAULO] A fire ravaged Copersucar's sugar terminal in Brazil, paralysing operations of the world's biggest sugar trader and putting 10 million tonnes of export capacity offline for six months or more.

The fire hit all of Copersucar's warehouses at the Santos port, igniting 180,000 tonnes of sugar - roughly 10 per cent of Brazil's monthly sugar exports - and driving prices of the sweetener to a one-year high on global markets.

The loss of nearly all of its port capacity will send Copersucar scrambling to lease or rent terminal space to cover its obligations to global buyers and exchanges in the coming months. Copersucar says nearly a fifth of the world's sugar exports flows through its trading desks.