Cocobod data: Ghana cocoa purchases hit 679,088 T

Dried cocoa beans are packed in hessian sacks on a cocoa farm near Amankwakram in Western Ghana on the border with Ivory coast.

ACCRA (Reuters) - Ghana's cocoa purchases reached 679,088 tonnes by May 9 since the season started on October 12, down 10.1 percent from the same period last year, data from industry regulator Cocobod showed on Monday.

Total purchases for the week ending May 9, the 30th of the 33-week main crop, rose marginally to 20,425 tonnes from 20,375 tonnes in the week before, according to the data. Ghana, the world's second-largest cocoa grower after Ivory Coast, has forecast about 800,000 tonnes of cocoa purchases this season.