French producers have withdrawn all offers to sell more than 700000 tonnes of sugar into European Community intervention stocks EC Commission sources said. They also said West German producers had now withdrawn the last 3000 of the 79250 tonnes they sold into EC stores on April 1. The sales were made to protest against the level of export restitutions being granted for sugar at weekly EC tenders. Last Friday commission sources said the West German producers had withdrawn all but 3000 tonnes of their sales. The protest by European producers involved sales of 854000 tonnes of sugar into intervention of which 785000 tonnes were accepted by the commission. Under EC regulations operators had five weeks before receiving payment to withdraw the sugar. Their decision to withdraw the sugar follows what commission sources have said is a slight shift in the authoritys stance in recent weeks. The commission last week increased the maximum restitutions to within about 0.5 Ecus per kilo of the prices which traders claim are needed to match intervention prices.
FRENCH PRODUCERS WITHDRAW SUGAR FROM INTERVENTION