SOFTS-Raw sugar hovers above 2-1/2-yr low, ICE cocoa hits 1-wk low

* Sugar weighed by speculator selling, ample supplies

* W. Africa weather seen favouring cocoa development

* Plentiful coffee from previous Brazil crop-Licht

(Adds detail on cocoa, robusta markets, updates prices; adds byline, New York dateline) NEW YORK/LONDON, April 3 (Reuters) - Raw sugar futures were little changed on Wednesday, hovering near the previous session's 2-1/2 year low as expectations of ample global supplies weighed, and cocoa futures on ICE sank on pressure from forward West Africa sales and technical selling. Liffe robusta futures rose, after earlier sinking to the lowest price in two months. May raw sugar futures on ICE Futures U.S. edged up 0.04 cent, or 0.23 percent, to 17.63 cents a lb at 12:54 p.m. EDT (1654 GMT), not far above Tuesday's 2-1/2-year low of 17.50 cents. Traders said sugar felt some marginal support as the dollar index weakened against a basket of currencies, but investor and producer selling was seen weighing heavily on the market. "Flat prices continued to be under pressure from continued speculative selling, whilst some producer selling has come down from the 18 cent level," said Nick Penney of brokerage Sucden Financial. Raw sugar prices have fallen amid expectations of ample supplies from top producer Brazil. Sugarcane mills are beginning to crush Brazil's main centre-south cane crop, estimated at a record 600 million tonnes, which dealers say is expected to keep a lid on sugar prices. Brazil's sugar output will be 6 percent more than last year, but raw sugar exports may experience fewer logistics delays than a record soy and corn crops. May white sugar on Liffe was up $5.40, or 1.1 percent, at $507.80 a tonne.

COCOA FALLS, COFFEE GAINS May cocoa on ICE Futures U.S. declined $21, or 0.9 percent, to settle at $2,150 a tonne, after earlier falling to a one-week low of $2,130. Cocoa felt pressure from forward sales as West African producers looked to sell into any rallies and from good supply prospects for the mid-crop, dealers said. "The weather over West Africa continues to combine heavy rains with high temperatures which is positive for crop development," said Eric Sivry, head of agri options brokerage at Marex Spectron. Prices traded higher at the opening of the session before hitting technical selling as they approached resistance near the $2,200 per tonne level. "We found some early liquidation and profit-taking, and there was no follow-through buying," said Sterling Smith, a futures specialist with Citigroup in Chicago, noting that cocoa has been locked in range bound trading with support at $2,100 per tonne. Trading volumes were heavy at more than 37,000 lots, compared to a 30-day average of fewer than 25,000 contracts, preliminary Thomson Reuters data showed. Speculators moved to a net long position in ICE cocoa futures and options in the week to March 26, U.S. government data showed on Friday. The noncommercial dealers had reversed their stance to a net short position during the previous week.

Liffe July cocoa futures eased 18 pounds, or 1.2 percent, to close at 1,464 pounds a tonne, after earlier touching $2,035, the contract's lowest price since early February. Liffe July robusta coffee futures gained $27, or 1.3 percent, to finish at $2,047 a tonne. Robusta futures reversed the session's early losses after prices fell to key Fibonacci retracement levels near the $2,036 per tonne level and inspired short-covering. The July contract jumped nearly 20 percent from a December low of $1,855 per tonne to a March high of $2,217 per tonne on concerns over supplies from top producer Vietnam amid unfavourable dry weather. Robusta has tumbled from recent highs amid long liquidation as supply concerns were seen easing and on technical selling.

But there may be room for some recovery, with dealers saying the robusta coffee supply from top producer Vietnam could become tight this month. "The demand profile should stimulate prices a little bit, as well as renewed worry over the drought in Vietnam," Citigroup's Smith said. ICE May arabica coffee futures were up 2.95 cents, or 2.17 percent, at $1.391 per lb. Prices reached a contract low of $1.3205 per lb on March 20, thanks to expectations of hefty supplies Mostly favourable weather in Brazil has weighed on the market, boosting supply expectations for a record off-year harvest in its biennial production cycle. The market has been has been well supplied after bumper output in 2012/13. "The big Brazilian crop will start soon, and there is still plenty of coffee from last year's crop," said Stefan Uhlenbrock, soft commodities analyst with F.O. Licht in Germany.

(Editing by James Jukwey and Alison Birrane)