As we speculated earlier, trying to publicly corner a market is a sure way to financial ruin (just ask the Hunt brothers). So far Anthony Ward's seems to be learning this the hard way. Since news of Ward's large purchase leaked out, the price of cocoa has plummeted by approx 10.5%, as an improved crop outlook from the Ivory coast has eased supply concerns. This is contrary to Ward's bet that a poor crop from the Ivory Coast would lead to a supply shortage and higher cocoa prices. It is surprising that Ward could be so wrong when it comes to the supply/demand situation. He has an extensive information gathering operation ,which gives him an inside track to the worldwide cocoa market. In particular, he has people on the ground in the Ivory Coast monitoring the weather, cocoa volume at major ports, and general crop conditions. His firm also acts as a distributor of cocoa and coffee in the region, which gives him an information advantage when it comes to where cocoa is being shipped. But so far, all of this has not helped him with his cocoa operations.
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