1.   The boom in mild arabica prices, which has been stoked by heavy speculative and investment fund buying, has therefore tended to bypass the robustas, analysts said.

2.   The strike interrupted shipments for several days and caused arabica prices to soar on the New York futures market, as dealers expected a slump in sales from Colombia.

3.   Meanwhile, speculative purchases added a more upbeat flavour to the New York market, where arabica prices rose.

4.   Robusta prices in London followed arabica prices on the New York market higher this week, when the market finally became troubled by the ultra-low stocks of raw coffee.