SOFTS-Cocoa rises, sugar falls, eyes Brazil conference

* Brazil sugar week focused on persistent rainfall

* Cocoa dealers see no market impact from Ivorian strike

LONDON, Oct 20 - ICE benchmark cocoa futures rose on investor buying on Tuesday to fresh 15-month highs, aided by a softer dollar, while sugar and coffee fell with the sugar market focused on the Brazil conference week.

The euro relinquished gains to trade slightly lower against the dollar on Tuesday after options-related barriers kept it from breaking above $1.50.

In cocoa, dealers said a strike by a union representing a third of the cocoa cooperatives in top producer Ivory Coast, did not appear to have any market impact, as new crop cocoa export supplies were flowing steadily from West Africa.

Cocoa deliveries to ports in Ivory Coast continued as normal despite a major growers' union having called for a strike at the start of the week, shippers said on Tuesday.

"We hear similar stories every year," said one London-based cocoa dealer. "There is a lack of selling."

ICE December cocoa rose $19 to $3,324 per tonne at 1422 GMT, having earlier touched a 15-month peak of $3,344, while London March cocoa was up 13 pounds to 2,166 pounds per tonne in moderate volume of 2,369 lots.

BRAZIL SUGAR WEEK

Sugar futures fell in routine two-way investor dealings, with many traders away from their desks for Brazil sugar industry week.

Lausanne-based consultancy Kingsman said on Tuesday it expected to see the global sugar deficit to end in 2010/11, when supply would likely be balanced or in surplus with demand.

A focus at the Brazil sugar week was the impact of persistent and excessive rainfall in the world's top producer and exporter, dealers said.

"We'll have to wait till we get past this spell (rainfall)," said David Sadler, a senior sugar futures dealer. "I don't know if it's done any damage but it's certainly slowed things down."

Sucden revised down its forecast for the 2009/10 centre/south Brazilian sugarcane crush to 540 million tonnes from its previous prediction of 550 million, due to heavy rains.

Dealers talked of a lack of fresh physical offtake in sugar, and said if benchmark ICE futures move higher and break above key psychological resistance at 25 cents a lb, producer selling could kick in.

"I think we're struggling to break (above) 25 cents," Sadler said.

Raw sugar futures more than doubled this year, due to the impact of strong Indian import demand and heavy rains in Brazil.

Dealers saw key resistance in March at 25 cents and then at 26.25 cents, with support at 21.00-21.50 cents.

ICE March raw sugar futures were down 0.55 cent to 23.62 cents a lb, while London December white sugar was down $11.20 to $592.00 per tonne in modest turnover of 3,061 lots.

Arabica coffee futures fell below Monday's settlement around 15-month highs on investor selling.

"Today is a liquidation day. We've had profit-taking from the highs," one coffee futures dealer said.

ICE December arabica coffee futures fell 3.8 cents to $1.4045 per lb, while London November robusta futures fell $18 to $1,443 per tonne in moderate volume of 5,580 lots.