London, Oct. 11 - The European Commission Thursday decided against further sugar production withdrawal from the initial 2 million metric tons already pegged for withdrawal as of March 2007.
This was due to an updated market forecast, which showed a reassuring balanced market for the 2007-08 sugar marketing year, a commission statement said.
The current withdrawal has enabled beet growers to reduce sowings accordingly to avoid a massive sugar surplus, which had been estimated at at least 4 million tons prior to preventive action.
"Uncertainty concerning the forecast of certain variables, mainly imports, is not deemed sufficient to justify active intervention at (the European Union) level," the statement said.
The E.U. sugar reform, which seeks to reduce domestic consumption, began July 1. A World Trade Organization ruling currently limits the amount of sugar that can be exported out of the E.U.