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Bangalore, May 1: While coffee planters have reason to cheer with domestic prices this year surging by over 40% compared to last year, exports have dipped by 25 to 30%, claim coffee exporters.
Speaking to FE, coffee export company Harris Jayanti vice-president Milan Shah said: “high coffee prices are hurting exports, as exporters took orders expecting that Indian prices would go up as much as international prices. But domestic rates went up much higher than international rates, making it difficult for exporters to compete globally. The exports this season are down by atleast 30,000 tonne compared to last year.
In terms of value, exports are said to be hit by nearly 5% this season.
Mr Shah said that while the industry estimates a volume growth of 5-6% in production this year, coffee growers are adopting a ‘wait-and-watch’ approach to sell the stock if and when prices rise further.
This year, Indian Arabica prices are nearly $1.30 per pound, compared to 70 cents last year. Robusta cherry beans are being traded for around $1,050 per tonne this year, compared to $700-800 per tonne last year.
In India, December is the harvesting period and typically, during the arrival period of coffee between January to May, March witnesses peak sales in trading.
India exported nearly 2,25,000 tonne of coffee last year, from the overall domestic production of 2,92000 tonne. Over 50% of Indian coffee is exported to Europe, 10% each to Gulf and Japanese markets, and the balance 25% is scattered across smaller markets.
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