Vietnam, the world’s second largest coffee exporter, is reported to ship 482,000 tons of coffee abroad in the first three months this year, fetching USUS$695 million, up 83 per cent and 133.6 per cent on-year, according to the General Statistics Office (GSO).
Coffee exports in March alone are estimated to bring in about USUS$173 million, up slightly compared to the previous month.
Coffee earnings have for the first time surpassed those of aquatic products to become Vietnam’s fourth-largest foreign exchanger earner after crude oil, textiles and footwear.
Statistics also showed coffee shipments from October 2006 through March 2007 hit 706,000 tons, while shipments this month alone would rise 11.1 per cent from last March to 120,000 tons, or 2 million bags.
Export offers for Vietnamese Robusta grade 2, 5 percent black and broken beans firmed to between US$1,350 and US$1,425 a ton this month, free-on-board basis, from between US$1,070 and US$1,200 last March.
Given the export volume released on March 26, Vietnam would have around 150,000-180,000 tons of coffee left in the country, based on a crop output estimate of 15 million bags plus 0.8 million bags in stocks carried over from the previous crop.
Domestic consumption remained stable at 0.83 million bags.
Low domestic coffee stock is expected to push prices up in the coming months, according to the Vietnam Coffee and Cocoa Association (Vicofa).
Vietnam’s coffee crop year goes from October to September the following year. Since the main harvest ended in January, farmers in the Central Highlands key growing area have been watering and fertilizing trees for the next production cycle. (Labour, Vietnam Economic Times)
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