Ivory Coast President Laurent Gbagbo, NOT elect.... Has nationalized the Cocoa industry..... Civil war LOOMS. 

15 in COCOA futures

I posted back on December 26 of last year about the political and economic crisis/civil going down on in the Ivory coast. This crisis between a leader who will not concede loss and the officially elected leader has caused the price of cocoa to rise and jeopardizes the cocoa trade within the county.

The Ivory coast region produces some 40% of the worlds supply of cocoa. As of right now the tensions are still not resolved and are escalating.

(Bloomberg writes)"Ivory Coast’s post-election crisis is having a “catastrophic” effect on the West African nation’s economy, said President-elect Alassane Ouattara, who warned of food shortages and called for “legitimate force” to oust his rival Laurent Gbagbo.

“It’s clear that the GDP is going to decrease, exports are going to slow down, and imports

as well,” Ouattara said in an interview in Abidjan, the commercial capital, yesterday. “How about the local foodstuffs sector? If this continues we are going to have shortages.”

Cocoa prices are sure to rise as the tension escalates.. buy up your beans....

(VOA writes)  Non president  Gbagbo..."Financially, Mr. Gbagbo has pushed cocoa businessmen to pay advances on export taxes, as part of efforts to keep paying civil servants and southern security forces, a monthly tab evaluated at up to $100 million. 

Mr. Ouattara, who is holed up in a hotel in the main southern city Abidjan, has warned any payments made to Mr. Gbagbo will have to be paid back to his own government.  

Ivory Coast also owes money, but Mr. Gbagbo's side says since it is not recognized, it has stopped paying interest payments due on existing government bonds."