Cocoa futures rose to $8,869.08 per tonne today, gaining 2.68% from the previous period. Despite the uptick, the market remains highly volatile, caught between supply-side uncertainty in West Africa and fluctuating stockpile levels in the United States.
Over the past month, cocoa prices have dropped 10.10%, retreating from one-week highs of nearly $10,100 reached on June 16, but remain 12.42% higher than this time last year, according to trading data from contract for difference (CFD) that tracks the commodity’s benchmark market.
It’s a reminder of cocoa’s wild year, having hit an all-time high of $12,906 per tonne in December 2024, with markets still adjusting after that historic surge.
READ ALSO:
Fresh rainfall in Ivory Coast, Ghana, and Cameroon, the world’s top cocoa producers, has improved soil moisture and raised hopes for better mid-crop yields. Yet, the optimism is measured. Persistent wet conditions have also increased the risk of black pod disease, a fungal threat that can slash output and compromise bean quality.
What does this mean for you?
Right now, farmers are hoping for higher cocoa prices because higher prices mean more money for the same harvest. And while prices did hit record highs late last year, they’ve cooled off quite a bit in the past month (down 10.10%), though still 12.42% higher than a year ago.
If diseases spread and harvest volumes drop, cocoa prices globally might go up again — good for farmers if they have healthy beans to sell. But if their own crops are affected by disease, they might miss out on those higher prices because they’ll have less or lower-quality cocoa to sell.

Meanwhile, cocoa stockpiles at U.S. port warehouses monitored by the ICE Futures U.S edged up to 2.307 million bags as of Monday, June 23, from 2.276 million on June 13. The modest increase signals some relief in domestic supply but isn’t enough to quell broader concerns over global availability.
Analysts say that unless West Africa’s rainfall patterns stabilise and crop disease risks are managed, cocoa prices could remain on edge through the remainder of 2025’s key harvest periods.