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VN coffee consumption to surge
The US Department of Agriculture (USDA) on Tuesday forecast Viet Nam's coffee consumption in the 2012-13 crop would likely reach 1.83 million 60-kg bags, against 1.7 million bags in 2011-12.
The USDA also expected that Viet Nam, the world's largest producer and exporter of robusta beans, would gain the largest ever bumper crop in the 2012-13 period (lasting from October 2012 to September 2013) with an output of up to 22.45 million bags, an increase of roughly 7 per cent over the current 2011-12 crop (lasting from October 2011 to September 2012) thanks to higher yields and investment in production.
Coffee carry-in stocks in the current crop ending September 30 may total 510,000 bags, up 53 per cent against the previous crop, because farmers held back supplies in expectation of higher prices, the USDA said.
Viet Nam's robusta coffee last week rose to its highest price in seven months at between VND42.8 million and 43 million ($2,055-$2,064) a tonne. Strong demand for robusta, used for making soluble coffee, combined with diminishing certified stocks has kept futures prices firm since May.
Farmers in Central Highlands provinces have been expected to unload part of their remaining stocks if prices rise towards VND45 million per tonne, traders have said, adding that not many farmers were in a position to hold stocks for long.
According to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, the country exported nearly 928,000 tonnes of coffee between last October and April 2012, the first seven months of the 2011-12 crop, down 0.85 per cent from the previous season.
It is also estimated that roughly 110,000-130,000 tonnes of coffee were shipped in May, bringing the total export volume for October 2011-May 2012 to roughly 1.04 million tonnes.
The average export price of Viet Nam's robusta coffee beans for the first seven months of 2011-12 was $1,918 per tonne, a decline of 3 per cent compared with the same period a year earlier
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