SOFTS-Raw sugar recovers after slide, arabicas rally

* Weak real currency caps sugar, coffee

* Indian mills' call for further subsidies weighs on sugar

By David Brough

LONDON, March 16 (Reuters) - Raw sugar and arabica coffee futures rose on Monday after falling sharply on Friday as top grower Brazil's real currency sank to its weakest against the dollar in 12 years.

Raw sugar futures rose on technically driven buying boosted by a softer dollar versus a basket of currencies after slumping five percent to a six-year low on Friday.

"The level of the Brazilian real is the biggest factor driving sugar prices," said Tom McNeill of Green Pool Commodities.

"The weak real allows Brazilian producers to get on with pricing their 2015/16 crop, and implies that a larger portion will go to sugar," he said.

Pressure from mills in No.2 producer India for additional subsidies has capped sugar prices.

"Given the Indian harvest will only last one more month, low prices now will probably make sure that very little Indian raw sugar is exported this year," McNeill said.

India's sugar mills are looking for another round of government incentives to export refined products as a supply glut hammers global and local prices.

Front-month raw sugar rose 0.13 cents or 1 percent to 12.83 cents a lb at 1121 GMT, having slid 4.8 percent on Friday to the lowest for the spot contract since April 2009 at 12.57 cents.

Speculators cut their net short position in ICE sugar contracts to 72,610 contracts, down 4,755 lots, Commitments of Trade data showed on Friday.

May white sugar was up $3.30, or 0.9 percent, at $366.00 a tonne.

Arabica coffee futures rallied in a technical correction after hitting a fresh 13-month low on Friday, pressured by the slide of the real.

The weak Brazilian currency boosts incentives for producers there to lock in local-currency returns from dollar-denominated sugar and coffee sales.

May arabica futures traded up 3.95 cents, or 3 percent, at $1.3375 per lb, having slid to a 13-month low of $1.275 per lb on Friday.

"Short-term indicators suggest the potential for modest gains towards $1.40," said Myrto Sokou, senior research analyst with Sucden Financial.

Robusta coffee rose $21, or 1.2 percent, to trade at $1,729 per tonne, having fallen on Friday to $1,685 per tonne, the lowest since January 2014.

New York May cocoa traded up $5, or 0.2 percent, at $2,823 a tonne.

May London cocoa eased 6 pounds, or 0.3 percent, to 1,988 pounds a tonne. (Editing by Susan Thomas)